Breaking the Cycle
by BeBraveLive4Me
Summary: Jude Harrison's heart has been broken by three different guys now, what else is there left for her to do? Takes place after Won't Get Fooled Again.
1. Chapter 1

Sadie Harrison was busy at work, wiping down the counter tops like any other day. She turned around as she heard a customer ring the bell. Without hesitation, she quickly stated "What can I--" She looked at the customer who was no other than her sister's producer, and little bit of her own crush. "Tommy!"

"Hey, Sadie," Tommy said, holding back a smile. He stuck his hands in his faded denim pockets as he looked her up and down silently. His smile finally broke out as all he could say was "Nice outfit."

Sadie gave Tommy a bitter smirk as he chuckled. She brushed her apron down, not letting the comment get to her and replied "It's part of the job. Are you here to order something, or just to harass me?"

"I'm sorry." Tommy gave her one last smile before he straightened out his face in all seriousness. "It's actually neither." Tommy looked behind him to see a line beginning to form. He leaned in closer to Sadie and asked quietly, "Do you have a break coming up?"

Sadie looked at Tommy and could tell whatever the subject was, it was important. She turned her head to the clock hanging to her left and said, "Give me about ten minutes."

Tommy nodded as he walked over to a table in the food court, still in Sadie's view. In the ten minutes she took three orders, never taking her eyes off of him. For all she knew, this could be when she finally gets him. Yet Tommy's thoughts were nowhere with Sadie. Although he was in her view, his gaze was out in the middle of nowhere. He was quickly brought back when Sadie's apron flew out of her hand and onto the table.

Sadie sat back and crossed her legs, trying to read him. He felt her eyes penetrate into him, but he continued to look away. She couldn't tell what was in his distant stare, so she asked playfully, "What did you want to speak to me about, Mr. Quincy?"

His eyes finally met hers. Tommy leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table. He looked around them to ensure their privacy as he spoke. "How--How's Jude doing?"

Now looking away from Tommy, Sadie gave a faint laugh. She felt so stupid for thinking it could ever be about herself, especially when it could be about Jude. She also leaned in and rested her arms on the table, mockingly. She replied, "She's fine. I mean, as fine as your life can be when the guy you look up to most breaks your heart." Leaving a look of terror on his face, Sadie pulled away from the table, sitting in her original position. 

Tommy couldn't believe that Jude told Sadie about what happened. And even worse, it hurt Tommy that Sadie said he broke her heart. Tommy sat in silence as he leaned back in his chair. He knew he was wrong for what happened on Jude's sixteenth birthday, but he never thought he'd hurt her so much.

"Is that all you wanted, Tommy?" Sadie pulled her apron closer to her, fiddling with its strings. She couldn't seem to face Tommy after getting her hopes up. Avoiding his eyes, she stood and continued, "My break's only fifteen minutes…"

"Oh, yeah. Sorry. If you have somewhere else to be…" Tommy uttered, still distant.

Sadie could tell Tommy had more on his mind now than before she took her break, and something was wrong. She sat back down, crossed legs, apron on lap, and still playing with the strings. "No, not really. It--It kinda seems like you have somewhere else to be…" Sadie made an effort to get Tommy to look at her as she moved her face directly in front of hers. "Or already are somewhere else."

"Nope." Tommy replied coldly as he looked downwards. His thoughts were still fixed on Jude and the kiss they shared. It's been a week since that night, and he still couldn't get away from that moment. It lived in his dreams and his nightmares.

"What aren't you telling me, Tommy?" Sadie asked quietly, trying not to attract attention, but still get a reaction out of him. He looked at Sadie to see her eyes pleading with him to tell her the truth.

Tommy looked back at Sadie annoyed. Jude obviously told her about the night they kissed, so why was she making him talk about it? "Just this whole situation with Jude." His anger grew instantly as he thought of her recent behavior. He raised his voice, but still commented quietly, "She's just being so damn difficult."

"Our home is destroyed!" Sadie quickly snapped back. "God! Give her some time!" Looking away, she scoffed in disgust.

Tommy's anger vanished and his eyes grew wide with surprise. "What--What do you mean, 'destroyed'?"

Sadie's eyes began to water. She quickly wiped away the tears forming before they fell. "Well, Dad leaving and Mom being a total mess isn't what I call the perfect family. It's killing me that it has to be like this, but I feel even worse for Jude."

"Why Jude?" Tommy asked, clearing his throat.

"Dad was her hero. And then he ruined everything. And--And now everything she's looked up to is completely gone. Even worse, she pretends like it's not happening. I'm there for her, but she… I haven't even seen her cry."

Sadie wasn't quick enough to catch her tears as she lost all control of her emotions. She wept as Tommy raced around the table to her side, trying to comfort her. "It's okay. It'll be okay."

At that moment, Tommy understood "Skin" was never about him. He cradled a broken Sadie in his arms, not because of a kiss, but because of their father. Tommy Quincy finally realized he really did need to get over himself.

"Thanks," Sadie murmured from Tommy's arms. She pushed herself away and wiped her tears from her face. She casually stood and put her apron on.

Tommy looked at her curiously. She seemed as if nothing had happened just a minute ago. He felt like more of a mess than Sadie at the moment. "Are you sure you're okay to go back to work?"

Sadie brushed her hands over her face one more time. She calmly replied, "I'm not the one you should be worried about. I'm fine." Sadie then walked off, leaving a helpless Tommy in the food court. 


	2. Chapter 2

Tommy strolled into G Major. He ignored everything around him and went directly to his office. He had so much on his mind already, he didn't know if he could deal with much more.

He opened the door to see Jude sitting at his desk, teary eyes fixed on the television. Tommy looked at the screen to see her performance of "Skin" being played. Her pained voice filled the room. Tommy could only help but remember the night of the performance. He could feel the bitterness in her words and see the hurt in her eyes. And all the while, he thought he caused it.

"Hey there," Tommy said softly.

Jude looked up at Tommy, not bothering to fix her appearance. At that moment, all she wanted was for him to hold her. She wanted to go back and stay in the sweet sixteen kiss they shared. Then she'd never know the heartache of Tommy's regret and her father's lies.

Jude worried Tommy as she sat in silence. He wanted to hold her tight in his arms and wipe away any and all of her tears and pain. His heart melted in every way for her. Tommy spoke to her as gently as possible, "I'm sorry about what's happening."

She turned off the television and closed her eyes. She wished Tommy had nothing to be sorry about. But still, he wasn't the only or main reason for her breakdown. "You don't have to be sorry, Tommy. This isn't about you."

Tommy walked closer to Jude and leaned against his desk. "I--I know." He hesitated to continue as Jude gazed deeply into his eyes. "It's about your dad."

"How do you know that?" Jude kept her eyes deep in Tommy's. She stood, waiting for an answer.

"Sadie told me." Tommy thought about it and realized she only told him because he was checking up on Jude. He quickly added, "I ran into her at the mall."

Jude looked at him skeptically and responded with a simple, yet faint, "Oh."

"Jude, you can talk to me," Tommy explained as he brushed some stray hair out of her eyes. He moved his hand to her shoulder and her skin chilled him. He then took off his jacket and placed it around her.

Shivers shot through Jude's body as she remembered the last time she wore Tommy's jacket. Her tears fell hard, but she tried to squeeze her eyes closed, keeping them away. Jude sniffled as she calmly moved both shoulders backwards, letting the jacket fall to the floor.

Tommy bent down to retrieve the jacket. He thought she was just trying to keep to herself, but had no idea about the truth. "You're freezing, girl." Tommy put the jacket around her again.

Instead of trying to reject his offer again, Jude let of a bitter, "Who cares?"

Her words hit him hard. Tommy hated knowing that Jude felt alone. He cared more about her than he ever thought he could. Gently directing her face to his with his hand, Tommy gave her a concerned look. "You know I care about you."

"Really?" Jude forced Tommy's hand away, as she couldn't stand to look at him anymore. "Then why can you hurt me over and over again without giving a damn?"

Tommy turned away from Jude, not letting her see the sting in his eyes. They both stood silent, Jude staring at his back, and Tommy trying to organize his thoughts.

Tommy suddenly turned around and pounded his fists hard against the desk. He was leaning forward over the desk, using his arms to hold himself up. Tommy turned his chin to look over his shoulder at a frightened Jude. "You're not the only one hurting here, Jude."

"Then say it, Quincy." Jude showed no concern for Tommy as she spoke to him. She thought she finally had him figured out and Tommy did everything for show. Deep down, Jude wanted Tommy to care for her, but she didn't know if he could ever care for her in the right way. "Actually tell me how you feel."

Tommy moved his chin forward to look straight down on his desk. He didn't understand how Jude could be so cold. He couldn't even look at her anymore. "Jude, you know how I feel."

"Then why can't you admit it?" Jude swung Tommy around by his shoulder, ripping him away from his desk. "You tell me I know how you feel. And you tell me you don't want to lie anymore-- Then you tell me to lie! Why can't you just tell me the truth!" Tears ran down Jude's cheeks, but she paid no attention to them.

"Because it'll destroy everything, Jude! We can't be anything more than producer and artist, and I can hardly handle that!" Tommy calmed down and now whispered, "I'm falling for you… Falling fast and falling hard…"

Jude sat back down, shocked. She thought her relationship with Tommy would be a never ending cycle of lies and hurt. She asked for the truth, but never expected to get it. Once again, she received a truth on her part as she muttered out, "But I'm sixteen…"

"Exactly," Tommy said softly to Jude. He glanced over at Jude. She looked even more destroyed than when he first saw her in his office. His thoughts spilled out as he said quietly, "Everything's so messed up."

Only moving her eyes, Jude directed her attention to Tommy. He had the tendency to say either the perfect thing, or make the situation worse than before. Jude felt another crack in her heart form. "I'm so sorry, Tommy," Jude remarked coldly. "I should've stayed far away from you so I wouldn't have screwed up your life."

"Jude, no. I didn't mean--"

"Save it, Quincy." Jude stood and slid his jacket off her shoulders. She signaled towards him and back to herself as she said, "Producer. Artist. You got what you wanted."

Jude slammed his jacket against his chest and stormed out of the room. She slammed the door behind and her and leaned back onto it, drawing attention to herself. Jude looked up to see everyone at G Major staring up at her, then they quickly looked away.

"Hey." Jude heard a familiar voice coming towards her. "Are you alright, kiddo?"

Jude turned to her right and saw a worried Georgia at her side. She gave Georgia a quick glance, but then realized another pep talk was coming her way. Jude returned to looking straight forward, then replied, "Depends on what your definition of 'alright' is… At least you got the 'kiddo' part right."

Georgia put her hand on Jude's head in comfort. "Jude, I'm so--"

"Sorry?" Jude interjected. "Everyone's been so sorry lately. And you know what? None of it matters."

She started for the door as Georgia called out, "Jude!"

Jude turned around to face Georgia, and continued walking, but backwards. "I'm fine. Everything's fine. I'm going home." Jude turned back around to walk forward. She raised her arm above her head and waved behind her to everyone at G Major.

Once again, everyone watched Jude. When Georgia noticed the audience staring, she loudly cleared her throat. Everyone went back to work as Georgia watched Jude walk down the sidewalk until she was completely out of sight. She then gave off two loud knocks on Tommy's door. She opened the door and entered before he responded. 


	3. Chapter 3

"You wanna explain something, Tom?" Georgia asked as she strolled into his office. She took a seat in one of the chairs placed across from his desk.

Tommy stood behind his desk, holding his jacket tight to his chest. He stood there silently as he bit his lip in anger. His thoughts were so jumbles, he didn't even hear Georgia.

She grew impatient waiting for a response. Jude was extremely upset, and Georgia didn't like to see anyone like that. Especially if it was something she could fix herself. She tried again, "Tom, what happened?"

Under his breath, Tommy managed to say, "I don't know." He grasped the jacket a little tighter. He repeated a little louder, "I don't know." Tommy's grip stiffened even more, twisting the fabric rough between his hands. This time he shouted, "I don't know!" and threw his jacket hard against the wall across the room. Tommy's hands flew up, holding the top of his head. His elbows hid his face from Georgia.

Georgia jumped out of her seat, shocked by his actions. Georgia stroked Tommy's arms downwards in a soothing fashion. "Tom, Tom… Calm down." Georgia repeated herself until Tommy relaxed a little.

He quickly took a plunge backwards into his chair, and Georgia returned to her seat across from him. She watched his as he put his head in his hands for a second as he finally caught his breath. He then wiped a single tear away from his cheek.

In that moment of observation, Georgia realized that there was more going on than anyone could've guessed. At first, she would've guess Jude's depression was over Shay, and maybe Tommy gave her some crap about the whole deal. But Tommy's mood was a dead giveaway. Still, Georgia didn't know enough to confront anyone. "I don't know what's going on, but you can talk to me."

Tommy stared deeply into Georgia's eyes. He knew her long enough to see she already knew something. Tommy remarked, "You're right that you don't know… But I still want to hear you theory."

"My theory?" Georgia asked.

"Yeah. You know," Tommy stood and walked around to the front of his desk. He rested his behind on the desk, half standing, half sitting. "What G Major conspiracy is going on?" Tommy crossed his arms and looked down on Georgia about a foot away from him.

"Well…" Georgia looked away from Tommy as his stare made her a little nervous. "There's obviously something going on between you and Jude." She glanced back up at Tommy, catching his speechless reaction.

Tommy stood and turned away. He stuck his hands in his front pockets and went to stare at his collection of platinum CDs hung on the wall. There were at least ten different plaques, including the one from Tommy's days in Boyz Attack and the other's he worked on as a producer. Even Shay's latest. He cleared his throat when he came across Shay's before stating, "And you think what is going on between us?"

Georgia followed Tommy to the wall and also looked at the records. She placed her hand on his back and said, "I have no idea what's up with you and Jude. And Tom, that's your business, not mine. But we can't have everyone at G Major acting crazy." She patted his back a little before crossing her arms in front of her. She took one final look at the wall, and a quick glance at Tommy out of the corner of her eye.

As she turned to leave, Tommy's voice stopped her. "I'm just her producer, Georgia. There won't be any more problems other than figuring out the tempo." He stood motionless, still staring at the collection.

Georgia sighed as she gazed upon Tommy's jacket on the floor. She walked over to it and picked it up. She then untwisted it, patted it down, and nicely put it on the back of the chair where she sat. She fixed the collar so it looked fresh and made her way to the door. As Georgia turned the knob, she said without looking at him, "We'll see."

Tommy finally turned away from the wall, only catching Georgia closing the door behind her. He ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. His jacket on the chair caught his attention and he repeated in a whisper, "We'll see." 


	4. Chapter 4

For the second time, Jude hit the snooze button. She instantly fell back asleep, but less than a minute later, her mother entered the room. "Isn't there a meeting you have to go to?"

Jude groaned a little and rolled off of her stomach. She was in no mood to go back to G Major after what happened the day before. She painfully opened her eyes to see her room full of daylight. She quickly pulled her blanket over her face and mumbled, "I don't want to go."

"Now, Jude, I know things have been rough around here lately," Victoria Harrison took a seat on the bed next to her daughter, "but we still have our responsibilities." Victoria pulled the blanket under Jude's face and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Go to your meeting and then head to school. I wrote you a note incase the meeting runs long."

She gave her mother a look of disgust as Jude whined out "School?"

"Yeah," Victoria nodded her head. "School. You know, the place you've avoided for long enough."

Jude took the not from her mom's hand. It read: "Please excuse Jude Harrison from the periods missed on Tuesday, April 29th. -Victoria Harrison." Jude folded the note and sat up. She rubbed her sleepy eyes and groaned, making her way to the bathroom.

Victoria was left alone on Jude's bed. Tears fell silently down her face as Jude disappeared into the hallway. Victoria simply stood with a sigh, neatly made Jude's bed, and went into her own room.

After a quick shower, Jude returned to her room and put on yesterday's faded jeans and a dark purple t-shirt. She matched her shirt with a deep purple eyeshadow, but didn't bother to dry her hair. She finished her outfit off with her black Converse shoes. Before she left, Jude placed her not in her back pocket and grabbed her backpack.

Taking only one stop outside, Jude saw Tommy leaning back against his Viper. Jude paused for a second, a little surprised he was waiting for her. The initial shock quickly passed as she put her hands in her back pockets and walked across her lawn, avoiding him.

"Jude!" Tommy called out. It drove him crazy that Jude was ignoring him, so he jogged to catch up with her. "Jude, will you at least listen to me?"

She stopped walking and turned around. Jude looked everywhere except for Tommy's eyes. Jude shrugged her shoulders slightly and said calmly, "I'm listening."

Tommy inhaled deeply with his eyes fixed on Jude. "We-- We said a lot of things yesterday. And I'm sorry I hurt you."

Jude rolled her eyes at the statement. It didn't make her pain go away. It even made it a little worse. "Thanks a lot, Tommy, but it doesn't make it hurt any less."

Jude swiftly turned back around, but Tommy grabbed her arm, stopping her from walking away. He didn't waste time by turning her around. He whispered directly in the ear from behind, "We need to be professional, Jude. We need to be adults about this."

"I can't," she whispered back. Jude slowly turned to face Tommy with tears down her cheeks. Tommy's grip around her arm slipped down to hold her hand, which he cradled softly. "I'm only sixteen."

She let go of Tommy's hand forcefully, swinging it back towards him. She gave him a cold stare, penetrating his eyes with hatred. It broke Tommy's heart, a few tears escaping to show his pain. Jude bit her bottom lip, regretting her move, but she simply turned to leave.

Once again, Tommy called out, "Jude!"

"You be the adult, Tom!" Jude yelled back without stopping her pace.

She left him watching her stroll off as he sniffled and dried his face. He walked back to his car glumly, thinking about the recent events. He approached his car, nearly in slow motion as he reached his hand out to open the door to his Viper. Tommy would've stayed in his own separate world if he hadn't heard someone shout, "Quincy!"

He felt a rush through his body and a lump in his throat. Tommy turned away from his car and blurted out, "Jude--" 


	5. Chapter 5

"Sorry, Champ." Sadie stuffed a book into her backpack and zipped it closed. "It's just Sadie." She then gave him a little bit of a smirk. She opened her car door and threw her bag onto the passenger's seat.

Tommy felt like a jerk for annoying yet another Harrison before 7:30AM. He went up to Sadie's car as she sat in the driver's seat. "So, where are you heading to his early? Doesn't school start at 9:00?"

Sadie looked up at Tommy who was standing in the open doorway. She said with a bit of an attitude, "We start at 8:45. I'm going in early to work on a project."

"Oh," Tommy remarked as he backed off. He got the hint that Sadie didn't want to talk. "Well, good luck on the project."

Tommy closed Sadie's door for her and took the same depressing walk back to his car. He didn't understand why he was screwing up so much lately, but he knew that it was something he had brought upon himself. He just wished he could say something right to make things better for everyone.

Sadie watched Tommy's stroll to his Viper out of her side view mirror. Then she remembered why she had a crush on a guy like Tom Quincy. She knew he meant well, and had a killer ass. She couldn't leave him alone like that. He did stop by her house for a reason.

Backing out of her driveway, Sadie pulled up next to Tommy's Viper. She rolled down her window as Tommy did the same. "Sorry for a minute ago… I really should be at school already."

Tommy's spirit lightened a bit, thinking Sadie was just in a hurry. But still, Jude was on his mind, and she always knew how to throw him off. "Don't worry about me. If you're in a hurry--"

"I am. But I just realized you must have stopped by for a reason…"

He looked away from Sadie and exhaled deeply as he stared at his steering wheel. "I was just going to give Jude a ride. But I guess I missed her."

Sadie chuckled to herself. She was tricked by herself for the second time. "She left about ten minutes ago, which I should've also done. I'll see you later."

"Yeah--" Tommy started but was quickly cut off by the screeching of Sadie's tires. She bolted down the street, leaving Tommy in the dust. "Damn it," he cursed at himself for having that effect on women.

Tommy tightened his grip around the steering wheel in anger and pulled out into the street. Within a few minutes and a few more curse words, Tommy reached G Major. He excited his car to find Jude sitting in front of the main entrance of the studio. He took his time getting to the door. "Oh yeah, the meeting was cancelled," Tommy threw at her.

He sat on the step next to Jude, but she immediately stood. "Nice, Tommy. You should've told me."

"Told you?" Tommy stood a step above Jude. "Told you? You're the one that practically ran away from me this morning."

Jude crossed her arms over her chest. She knew he was right, but she needed something to throw back at him. She wouldn't let him win. "So is that really all you came over to tell me?"

She caught him. Of course Tommy wanted to talk to her about more than that. He didn't have anything specific in mind, but he knew that he wanted to talk to her. He wanted to be near her. "I'm not going to deny there are other things we should talk about, but I did mean to tell you."

Tommy gazed deeply and sincerely into Jude's eyes. She unfolded her arms as she started to melt. All Tommy had to do was give her that look. A smile broke on Tommy's face as he could see the way she was warming up to him. He took her hand and pulled her into his arms. He gently gave her a hug and whispered, "I'm truly sorry about everything. We do this so often. We-- We say too much, or we say too little--"

"I know… So much has happened lately…" Jude hugged Tommy back. She let go to look him in the eye. "Just…" A tear rolled down Jude's cheek. She exhaled, "Don't lie to me anymore. I don't think I'd be able to take it."

Her head sunk down into his chest. Tommy held her close, stroking her sort, red hair. He kissed the top of her head. Tommy was glad he had his Jude back, but it didn't change the fact that he couldn't have her.

He sniffled a little, holding back his own tears. He pulled away before he'd get too caught up in the moment. "You wanna go do something? We could get some breakfast…"

"Sure," Jude nodded and smiled.

Tommy grabbed Jude's backpack off of the steps and brought it to his car. He opened the door for Jude and placed her bag behind her seat. Tommy stood aside as Jude got into the car. Jude loved being treated like a princess, especially by her Prince Charming. She smile up to him as he started to close the door and she let out a, "Thanks."

Pulling out of G Major, Jude played a CD in Tommy's Viper. Tommy looked at Jude curiously as the CD player whirred. "What is that?" asked Tommy.

A single chord played, but Jude instantly stopped the CD. She looked straight forward and responded, "It's Shay." She nervously tilted her head to the left and saw and angry Tommy.

A few minutes passed in complete silence. Tommy never took his eyes off the road, and Jude never too her eyes off of him. He could feel her watching him, but he still couldn't hide his anger. Tommy cleared hit throat and said, "Please don't tell me you're listening to his sorry excuse for music because you're missing him."

Jude turned away from Tommy and looked into her hands. She held a blank CD case, tinted blue. She lightly ran her fingers along the edges, almost in a trance. "No. It's from Shay. He-- He sent it to me the day after the party. I just… I didn't want to listen to it alone."

Tommy and Jude glanced over at each other, almost in unison. Tommy reached over and patted Jude on the knee, resting his hand there. He softly asked, "Are you ready?"

Jude simply nodded and inhaled deeply. Tommy left go of Jude's knee and pressed the play button. The chord hummed again, and Jude cringed. Tommy felt her fear and returned his hand to her knee. That wasn't enough. Jude left go of the case and cradled Tommy's hand with both of hers.

"Hey, Jude. It's Shay… Obviously." The smug sound of Shay's voice made Tommy furious. He just wanted the CD to be over with, but Shay hadn't even started rapping yet. "I really am sorry about what went down. I'm not with Eden… But it's not like you'd want me back anyways-- I understand…" Jude gripped Tommy's hand a little tighter, and he returned her hold. "I, umm… I wrote this song for you before things… Happened. So I guess… Here it is."

Quickly, Tommy pulled up to the sidewalk and parked his car. He didn't know how he was going to react to the song, but he had an idea that it wouldn't be pretty. Even though he knew Shay made him crazy, he couldn't even imagine how the CD was affecting Jude.

Focusing in on Jude, Tommy tried to read her face. She was a little flushed with her eyes big and shiny. He didn't know if she was on the verge of tears from anger or sadness. All he could tell was Shay was really shaking her up. The music grew a little louder and Shay's voice chimed in, "She makes me feel…" 


	6. Chapter 6

_"Now see here's the deal   
My girl makes me feel   
Right as the sun rising in the east   
It wasn't easy at first   
I nearly treated her the worst   
Like a fairytale she's the Beauty to my Beast._

Now time have changed   
I'm a man that's changed   
But my feelings still remain the same…

She's the reason why   
In this world I even try   
I'll never let her cry   
I could never say goodbye   
And I'll always be her guy   
Cause she'll always be my   
My girl.

I was all about me   
Then I met her and she   
Challenged me in ways I never knew   
I used to be alone   
I'd make it on my own   
Until she came and made my whole new world...

She's the reason why   
In this world I even try   
I'll never let her cry   
I could never say goodbye   
And I'll always be her guy   
Cause she'll always be my   
My girl.

Give her the world.  
Give her my heart.  
Give her her dreams.  
This is only the start.

She's the reason why   
In this world I even try   
I'll never let her cry   
I could never say goodbye   
And I'll always be her guy   
Cause she'll always be my   
My girl.

She makes me feel."

Jude released Tommy's hand and pressed the stop button. She eject the CD, put it back in the case and stepped out of the Viper. Tommy did the same as they strolled deep into the neighborhood park.

Silently, Jude and Tommy made their way to the paved path of the park. Tommy worried about Jude as he watched her. She stared at her feet when she walked, and he knew that was always a bad sign for Jude.

Abruptly stopping, Jude looked up into Tommy's eyes. She turned her back to him and threw the CD in the trash to her side. Jude sighed and turned back around to face Tommy with tears ready to break. "That really was a sad excuse for music."

Tommy chuckled lightly and put his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket. Jude smiled a little, but felt sadness come over her. The tears started to flow down her cheeks. At this site, Tommy rushed Jude into his arms and asked, "Hey, hey. What's wrong?"

Pulling herself closer to Tommy, she asked, "How did everything get so complicated?" Her chest heaved hard against his, in and out. "Sometimes if feels like I can't breath."

Tommy tried to soothe her, running his hands up and down her back. He immediately pointed the finger at Shay for making her tears pour. "Girl, Shay was an idiot. He messed up, and you shouldn't have to pay for that."

"Shay?" Jude forces Tommy backwards, flinging his body off of her. "Right, Quincy. Shay is the only guy that messes things up."

Shocked, Tommy stared deeply into Jude's eyes. "Jude, I told you I was sorry! I thought you understood!"

Jude wiped away her tears, but they were quickly replaced with new ones. "I don't understand anything anymore!" Jude shouted back. She lightly shook, her body weakened. Jude broke down, her head in her hands as she crouched down low to the ground. "I can't forgive you," Jude squealed from behind her tears.

"What?" Tommy crouched down next to her, trying to get her to look at him. "You can't be serious, Jude." He gently raised her to standing position again as he supported her by the shoulders.

Her tears fell harder as she desperately tried to hide her face from Tommy. "I am."

Still trying to get Jude to look at him, Tommy started, "Jude…"

"What makes you any different than the rest of them!" Jude shouted with her last bit of strength. Her bold words disappeared and the rest of her words shook in her voice. "Why should I forgive your lies when they're still lies." Her face was soaked, but the tears stopped flowing. "Love me. Hurt me. Lie to me. It's like some stupid cycle."

"I'll never do it again," Tommy pleaded.

Jude nodded her head in agreement. "That's right. Because you'll never get the chance."

"I promised no more lies, Jude. I'm not gonna break that."

Crossing her arms stiffly across her chest, Jude pushed away Tommy's support. "I bet you already did." Jude shrugged her shoulders, waiting for the real banter to begin.

Genuinely confused, Tommy only stared back. He didn't know what she wanted to hear. All he knew was he wanted things to back to normal. Or at least what he considered normal for the two of them. "What are you talking about?"

"Us." Jude tapped her foot against the ground angrily. She did so in such a fashion she almost reminded herself of her mother. "You and me. Right here, right now. What are we?"

Tommy gave Jude the same blank expression. For once, Tommy was speechless, and Jude could tell. She unfolded her arms and ran both hands through her hair in frustration. "Do you want us to be friends?"

"Yes!" Tommy pounced, finally having an answer.

Jude nodded, biting her bottom lip. "And that's it?"

Jude's eyes caught Tommy's and he suddenly understood. Just the day before, Tommy had confessed his feeling to her. It wasn't too long before that had Tommy confessed his feelings for Jude to himself. If he could have anything he wanted, it would be her. The truth being, he didn't want to be her friend. He wanted to be her everything. Denying all of that was him lying not only to himself and to the world, it was Tommy lying to Jude. 


	7. Chapter 7

"That's not it at all." Tommy put his hands in his pockets, thinking hard. "But what should I do, Jude?"

Biting her lip harder, Jude only continued to stare at Tommy. He admitted to falling for her, and now he admitted he wanted to be with her. Before she confessed how much she wanted him too, she wanted to hear his excuse for why it wouldn't work. Jude wasn't ready to let Tommy break her again. "You tell me what you want to do."

Tommy rushed up to Jude. He molded his body to match hers, only an inch away from every part of each other's body. She inhaled and exhaled each breath he did. They were so close, Tommy could feel Jude's heart racing, but nowhere did they touch. Tommy whispered softly into Tommy's ear, "Girl, I want to hold you. Right now, this is the farthest I ever want to be from you." Jude slightly quivered as Tommy placed his hand on the small of her back. "I want to kiss you and take away our pain, your doubt, and any worries you might ever have."

Returning the passionate gaze into Tommy's eyes, Jude whispered, "Then do it."

"But--" Tommy started.

"No." Jude placed a finger on Tommy's lips gently. She stopped his words as he quivered. "No buts. Tommy, remember when I had to perform at school?" Tommy nodded slightly, pleasantly amused by Jude's finger still upon his lips. "You told me not to care what anyone else thought as long as it felt right."

Jude slid her finger away from Tommy's face and pleaded with her eyes. Being so close to Tommy was driving her crazy, but still, she promised herself she wouldn't be the one to make the first move. She wouldn't make a fool out of herself again. She opened her lips slightly and inhaled the air Tommy previously exhaled.

Quick and swiftly, Tommy pulled Jude's hips up against his. He wrapped one arm around her back and used his other hand to support the back of her neck. He kissed her with no doubt in his min, just love. Jude wrapped her arms around Tommy, running her fingers through his hair. Realizing she was kissing Tommy Quincy, Jude's knees went weak. Tommy held Jude so tightly, she remained standing. He always helped to keep her standing.

After what seemed like a lifetime, Jude pulled her lips away from Tommy's. Her actions surprised even herself. She gazed up at Tommy who looked both shock and worried. "It's okay," Jude said reassuringly. "I was just making sure it wasn't a dream."

Tommy leaned forward and kissed Jude tenderly on the forehead. He warmed her with both a smile and a hug. "Let's go get that breakfast," he said as he escorted Jude back to his car with his arm around her waist.

On the stroll to the car, Tommy couldn't resist giving Jude another peck on the cheek. Jude playfully pushed Tommy away, even though she loved every part of it. He knew she was loving their flirting as much as he was, so he grabbed her from behind and they spun in two giant circles. Laughing the entire time, Jude planted her feet on the ground and regained her balance.

Almost naturally, Jude's hand slipped into Tommy's as they walked. She rested her head on his shoulder and said, "I could get used to this."

At that moment, Tommy remembered all the reasons he couldn't be involved with Jude. Headlines of horrible stories written about himself and Jude passed through his head. Then he thought about how much more strained her relationship with Sadie would be. Jude's parents would hate Tommy. And worst of all, Georgia might ask Tommy to stop working with Jude.

Tommy effortlessly returned the gesture and rested his head on top of Jude's. He sighed as he thought about their bodies being the perfect fit for each other. He couldn't help but want her and regret her all at the same time.

Jude took a seat in the Viper after Tommy kindly opened the door for her. He then got into the car himself. Tommy sat in silence as he tightly gripped the steering wheel.

"You might want to start the car," Just said jokingly. Yet, when she saw the expression on Tommy's face, she knew it was no joking matter.

"It's getting pretty late, maybe we should just get you to school." Tommy avoided Jude's eyes as he contemplated their future in his head.

Jude instantly knew something was wrong. Part of their relationship was knowing each other inside and out. Nothing could be hidden for long. Jude replied skeptically, "Mom wrote me a not. We can still go eat… If you want…"

"Jude…" Tommy turned his head to see Jude anxiously waiting.

Letting off a chuckle, Jude held her hand up and looked at her watch. "I'd say that was about five minutes. Pretty pathetic." Jude shot Tommy a deadly stare. "But I guess that's a new record for us."

Tommy couldn't stand the look Jude was giving him. He looked straight forward, focusing hard as if he were driving. "I'm sorry, girl. But--"

"This better be good. Well, you do have pretty tough competition." Jude couldn't stand to look at Tommy anymore either. "Personally, my favorite is 'I've been cheating on your mom with a skank of a travel agent.' What you got?"

"Please…" Tommy's hand was turning red from his tight grip on the wheel. "Calm down, Jude."

Jude fought back her tears, but she couldn't hide the squealing and disappointment in her voice. "I'm calm, Tommy. I'm just waiting for you lie." 


	8. Chapter 8

Tommy banged his fist on the steering wheel, and turned his entire body to face Jude. "Damn it, girl! What did I just tell you?" Tommy placed his hand on Jude's knee gently, massaging it slightly. "I'm not going to lie to you."

"Then what's up, Quincy?" Jude held Tommy's hand resting on her knee. She wanted Tommy to know she still cared and wanted to be with hi, but she wasn't going to take any of his games.

Rubbing Jude's hand with his thumb, Tommy embraced her silky skin. "I--I don't want to mess things up between us. And that's the truth." Tommy used his other hand to run his fingers through Jude's hair lovingly.

Still unsure, Jude responded, "Well I don't think giving me the cold shoulder will help any."

"I didn't mean to. I just…" Tommy got lost in his thoughts again as he pondered how to go about their new relationship.

Jude stared at Tommy, wide eyed, waiting for him to finish his sentence. He tortured her with his unfinished statement until she blurted out, "You what?"

Tommy cleared his throat and continued, "I don't think we should tell everyone about us."

"Oh…" Jude's grasp on Tommy's hand loosened as she turned slightly to look out of the window. "I guess I wouldn't want to be seen dating me either."

"No! Jude--"

"I am just a wannabe rocker chick that got dumped in front of millions of people by an idiot rapper for a blonde bitc--"

"Jude!" he exclaimed, cutting her off. "You should probably add 'drama queen' to that list while you're at it." Jude was obviously avoiding Tommy as she looked in every direction he wasn't in. "Jude, look at me." Still refusing to look at Tommy, he reached out to her and guided her chin to his face. "I am not and will never be embarrassed by you. All I want is to give our relationship a fair shot."

She asked, "Is that what you call this?"

"No. This is what I call 'You being a pain in the as--"

"Hey! Watch it!"

Tommy and Jude gave off a light chuckle. Tommy took a deep breath and said, "A fair chance is not letting anyone or anything get in the way."

Jude nodded her head in agreement. After what happened with Shay, she understood about keeping her privacy, but she still needed to know how to go about it. "Like what? Where's the line of who we tell and who we don't?"

"I don't think we should tell… Anybody."

Once again, Jude nodded, this time a little more glumly. "I guess…"

Tommy caught the disappointment in Jude's reaction. Even when they were together, Tommy could still find ways to hurt her. "The press would do anything to bring us down, and I don't want them to turn us into something ugly," Tommy explained. "And--And your parents would never approve. They might make us stop seeing-- and working-- with each other if Georgia doesn't first."

"I get it, Tommy," Jude said with a faint smile. "It's okay."

Leaning in closer, Tommy kissed Jude. Breaking away, Tommy whispered, "We get to be together."

Jude's smile brightened and she gave Tommy another quick peck on the lips. "Let's go! I'm hungry!"

Tommy placed the key in the ignition and suddenly let his hands fall to his lap. He looked straight forward and the smile disappeared from his face. Tommy let his head fall back against the seat as he slouched. He exhaled sharply as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"What is it?" Jude asked worried. 


	9. Chapter 9

Sighing, Tommy said in complete seriousness, "I need… Another kiss for the road." He turned back to Jude. Smiling, he held back his laughter. Tommy pulled Jude close to him and planted a passionate kiss on her.

Jude leaned back and fastened her seatbelt. Starting the car, Tommy finally let his laughter escape. "That wasn't funny," Jude remarked.

"Yes it was," Tommy said in a cocky tone. He quickly added, "I'm hilarious!"

She knew he could always make her laugh, but she wouldn't let him win so easily. Trying to hider her smile, Jude said, "You know, I've said it once, and I'll say it again…" Jude paused as she could see the wheels turning in Tommy's head. Wish a slightly seductive tone, Jude finished, "Get over yourself, Quincy."

Tommy scoffed at the statement and went along with his self loving. "I'm awesome and you know it. I'm a well known fact," Tommy emphasized.

"Sure. Sure…" Jude tried to state coyly, but let out a giggle.

"Oh!" Tommy quickly exclaimed. "That's what I thought! Thomas Quincy is a legend!"

Their laughter filled the car. Jude was delighted to be spending her time having fun with Tommy. Tommy was excited that he could finally let himself free with another person, even if it had to be hidden between the two of them. He was happy, and she was happy. The couldn't ask for much more.

As their laughter started to die, Jude playfully threw at Tommy, "I hate you."

"You know you love me," Tommy threw back. He took a quick glance over his shoulder at Jude.

Running her fingers through her bangs, Jude shyly admitted, "I think I do."

Still cocky, but a little more serious, Tommy questioned, "Think… Or know?"

"Know," Jude whispered. She cleared her throat and announced a little louder, "I've known for a while."

Tommy reached over and grabbed Jude's hand, interlocking their fingers. He kept his eyes on the road and kissed the top of her hand. "Good, because I'm head-over-heels in love with you." Tommy looked back at Jude as they shared kind smiles with each other.

Releasing her hand, Tommy pulled into the parking lot of a small restaurant. It was quaint, built like a little cottage you'd find blanketed with snow. Jude stepped out of the car and could smell the refreshing pine scent. "You like it?" Tommy asked.

"Yeah," Jude responded. "But where are we? That was like a ten minute drive."

Tommy smirked and added, "But it was about a five minute drive to the park first."

Nodding her head slightly, Jude sighed. "Ok, so fifteen minutes. Big difference. It seems like you drove across Canada to get to this place."

"We're not that far away." Tommy started to walk Jude to the door, arm around her waist. "I can take you here everyday if you like it."

Jude smiled at the thought of Tommy promising something everyday. They hadn't even been together for half an hour, and Tommy was already thinking about their future. "We'll see," Jude said, flirtatiously inching her face closer to his, then pulling away.

She picked up the pace, and got a few feet ahead of Tommy before he pulled her back to him by the waist. He playfully tickled her while wrapping his arms around her entire body for a hug from behind. They approached the door in this position as an elderly couple exited the restaurant.

Tommy and Jude straightened their posture as Tommy let go of Jude. The man glared coldly at Tommy, disapproval blasting from his eyes. Jude nervously tucked her hair behind her ears while Tommy put his hands in his pant pockets and cleared his throat.

The couple brushed past Tommy and Jude, leaving an awkward silence. "Note to self: PDA, not so good," Jude commented.

Tommy reached around to open the door for Jude. He exhaled deeply and smiled, "Good thing I got that last kiss for the road. It might have to last me a while."

Jude went through the doorway, followed by Tommy. The hostess greeted them and brought them to a quiet little table in the corner. They sat down and started to browse the menu until someone caught Jude's eye. "This isn't going to be easy, is it?"

Tommy quickly took his focus off of the menu and placed it on Jude. He instantly noticed her distracted stare and looked in the direction Jude was staring. "It's gonna be hard," Tommy replied as he picked up his arm and waved at the table across the restaurant. 


	10. Chapter 10

Leaving their table, Jude and Tommy walked across the restaurant together. "Hey," Jude greeted. "What are you doing here?"

"Eating, obviously. What are the two of you doing here?" Georgia Bevans asked with a smirk on her face. "Shouldn't you guys be fighting or something?"

Tommy was reminded how much he hated Georgia's theories at that point. He remarked, "We have our creative differences…" Tommy, and everyone else, knew it was a horrible lie with the brilliant music they make together.

Georgia nodded intently with a curious look on her face. She turned her attention towards Jude and looked her up and down. She leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms over her chest. "No school today, Jude?"

"Still excused," Jude answered.

Continuing her nod, Georgia added, "Good. You need time." Georgia flashed looks between the couple and the room opening as they stood in silence. "We've already gotten our food, but you're welcome to join us."

Tommy glanced down at the table to see Georgia's plate accompanied by a few others. "Us?" Tommy questioned.

Turning the corner, Darius Mills made his way over to the table. After putting his phone away, Darius looked up to see Jude and Tommy standing around the table. "Looks like we've got ourselves a party," Darius said sarcastically as he took his seat. He directed towards Georgia, "Shay just passed Morrison Park, so he should be here in a few minutes."

"Shay's coming?" Jude squealed. She knew she was over him, but that didn't mean she wanted to see him any time soon. She wasn't really sure if she ever wanted to see him again.

The smirk disappeared from Georgia's face as she remembered what Shay had done to Jude. Georgia didn't want to betray Jude, but it was all for business. "It's just a business meeting, Jude."

Shock rushed over Jude. Shay had asked for Tommy to produce his next album earlier, but she figured her birthday would've changed things. Jude could hardly imagine working at G Major around Shay. "What kind of business?"

"What do you think, girl?" Darius snapped at Jude. "Are you stupid or something? We need to get his album finished and released."

Georgia calmly stepped in, trying to spare Jude's feelings. "Darius? Could we leave them out of this?" She looked deeply into his eyes, trying to tell him to shut up with her own eyes. "We can talk about it later."

Darius ignored Georgia's look and went right along with his comments. If Darius Mills wanted to say or do something, he wasn't doing to let anyone stop him. "We can't just stop everything because he broke the little girl's heart."

An embarrassed Jude looked down at her feet. She knew she never liked Darius for a reason. He could be the biggest name in the music business and have more money than every person in Canada combined, but she would never like him. He was probably the main reason celebrities got the reputation of being smug jerks.

"You don't talk about her like that." Tommy knew it was his place to interject when Darius embarrassed her. Jude kept her feelings in, but Tommy couldn't when it came to her. As long as they were together, Tommy knew he was going to take care of Jude.

Darius looked at Tommy with an irritated expression on his face. "Excuse me. Did I miss something, Tom?" Darius stood and faced Tommy, trying to intimidate him. "Since when do you get off talking to me like that?"

Tommy took a step closer to Darius, getting in his face. "Since you decided to talk to Jude like that." Tommy never gave in to a fight with Darius. Especially with Jude involved, Tommy would beat Darius into the ground if he had to.

"Hello? Guys?" Georgia stood over the table, trying to separate them with her words. "Can we try to calm down?"

In a swift motion, almost graceful, Darius grabbed Tommy by his jacket. He lifted Tommy up and pulled him closer. He whispered into Tommy's ear, "You really want to go? Because I've been ready for this for years."

Jude stood close enough to hear what was happening. She crossed her arms, still embarrassed by the current events. "Tommy, don't."

Tommy took a small step back, but Darius yanked on Tommy's jacket harder and whispered again, "Could that leash be any tighter? Bitch's got you whipped."

In one quick blow, Tommy shoved Darius backwards. Darius lost his balance, almost falling, but caught himself on a chair. He keeled over, on to a table, trying to catch the air he had knocked out of him. Tommy simply stood and fixed his jacket. "I told you not to talk about her."

"What the hell is going on?" Shay entered the restaurant and rushed to his uncle's side.

Tommy breathed rapidly, anger and frustration running through his veins. Jude put a hand on Tommy's arm, trying to relax him. "Tommy?" she whispered, trying to bring him back to her.

He glanced back at Jude and saw how shook up she was. He placed his hand on her back. "Let's get out of here."

Together, Tommy and Jude started for the exit, but Tommy was stopped when someone grabbed his arm. "You're not getting away that easily," Shay said in a deep and serious voice.

"Go eat. Your food's getting cold, Shay Shay," Tommy stated mockingly. He forced Shay's grasp away and quickly made his way to the exit. 


	11. Chapter 11

Once both of them were in the car, Tommy shouted, "I can't believe the nerve of that guy!" Tommy took a quick punch at the wheel, causing the horn to honk.

"Feel better?" Jude asked in a monotone voice.

Tommy shook his hand out, obviously in pain. He commented sarcastically, "Just dandy."

Jude reached out for his hand and pulled it close to herself. She looked at his red knuckles and brushed her fingers over them. She stopped when Tommy winced in pain, giving him a sympathetic look. Jude gently pressed her lips against his hand and kissed his knuckles lightly. "Better now?" she asked.

Relaxing, Tommy finally caught his breath. "Yes. Thank you." Tommy leaned in and gave Jude a kiss on her forehead, embracing every moment of it.

They sat in silence for a short while until Jude couldn't hold in her feelings anymore. "It's not that I don't appreciate it, but you really didn't need to hit him."

"For the record," Tommy started defensively, "I didn't hit him. I shoved him."

Jude shot Tommy a look of disbelief. "Oh yeah. That's a big difference."

Tommy interlocked his fingers with Jude's, holding her hand. "Look, Jude, I'm never going to let anyone treat you like that. It was wrong and he was a jerk. I--I don't care if he calls me names and challenges me. But the second he says anything about you… Of course I'm going to lose control."

Although Jude hated violence, she felt Tommy was coming from the right place. In the end, Tommy always meant well. Touched by his chivalry, Jude wrapped her arms around the back of Tommy's neck and gave him a long, powerful kiss. Their connection was like magic until it was unexpectedly broken when Tommy caught a glimpse of someone out of the corner of his eye.

He quickly swung his attention over to see a chuckling Kwest in front of his car. Mimicking Jude, Tommy said quietly, "Note to self: PDA, not so good." Tommy leaped up and grabbed Kwest by the arm, bringing him to the rear of the Viper. "You didn't see anything, Kwest. You get that?"

Kwest could only help but continue his laughter as Tommy's rage flared. "Did I call it, or did I call it?" Kwest managed to joke between each chuckle.

"What did I just say, man?" Tommy questioned. 

Jude joined them and gazed worriedly at the hysterical Kwest and infuriated Tommy. "Is everything okay?"

"Everything's great," Kwest replied. Letting his laughter die, Kwest hooked his arms around the back of both of their necks. "I knew it was just a matter of time."

"Kwest…" Tommy gave him a heartbreaking look. If Tommy knew how to do anything well, it was persuading people with his eyes.

Kwest sighed deeply and hugged his arms tighter around them. "I get it. Secret's safe with me."

Tommy's spirit lightened. He smiled and stated "Good. That's good." They stood awkwardly for a moment as Kwest smiled pleasantly back and forth between Jude and Tommy. Breaking the silence, Tommy started, "I'm all for male bonding, but, Kwest…"

Understandingly, Kwest removed his arm from Tommy's shoulder and gave him a pat on the back. Tommy couldn't help but smile at the fact that Kwest was so excited for them. Taking a second look, Tommy realized Kwest only let go of him, but still held Jude. "Dude! Would you like it if I had my hands all of your girl?" Tommy took Jude into his arms, placing his hands on her hips.

"I wouldn't appreciate that too much," Jude said, raising her hand. Jude directed her attention back on to Kwest. "What are you doing here?"

"Ah… About that…" Kwest glanced in the direction of the front entrance. "The two of you probably shouldn't go in there…"

"Why?" Tommy asked, already knowing the answer. He figured, Kwest enjoyed making him sweat, the least he could do was return the favor. "It's not like you guys are having secret G Major meetings behind our backs."

Tommy started to laugh at his joke. He secretly tickled Jude to start her laughter, but Kwest only stood there. Tommy would take quick glances at Kwest from the corner of his eye. Letting the laughter die down, Tommy asked again, "Really man, why shouldn't we go in there?"

"Your girl's a better actor than you, Tom Quincy." Kwest wiped the nervous look from his face and said, "I guess I'm a pretty hot actor too." Kwest couldn't help but laugh as he beat Tommy again. "You guys already went in, huh?"

Jude nodded and answered, "Yeah." She laughed too as she could relate to the excitement and humor in outsmarting the great Tom Quincy. She straightened out as she remembered what happened in the building just minutes ago. "It wasn't too pretty."

"I hope it included someone kicking Shay's butt because that kid deserves it." Kwest said sarcastically. He directed his attention to Tommy and his swollen knuckles. "Did you…"

"Nope," Jude interjected. "That was Tommy's fight with the steering wheel."

Kwest started laughing again and patted Tommy's shoulder. "Good. Even though he's a jerk, we still gotta work with the kid."

"We?" Tommy shouted. "Even after what he did?"

Feeling bad for all his fun earlier, Kwest watched his feet as he shuffled around a little. He hated being the one to know all the facts, but that's just who he was. "Trust me, Shay's not thrilled about working with you, or at G Major at all. Darius wants the best, and you're still the best producer around."

"I don't think Darius thinks you're so great anymore…" Jude tousled her bangs between her fingers, still a little shaken by the current events.

Furrowing his brow, Kwest questioned, "What am I missing?"

Tommy sighed deeply, leaning up against the back of his car. "Darius and I had a… Disagreement."

Kwest nodded, but stopped to shrug his shoulders. "Like you and Darius have ever gotten along. What happened this time?" Kwest could almost feel the secrets surrounding them and quickly thought of a possible situation. "Does he know about the two of you?"

"No! Hence why you can't tell anyone, man!" Tommy rubbed his forehead with his palm, still avoiding Kwest's question. He didn't need the whole world to know he lost his temper, even if it was for Jude.

Silence filled the area between the three. Tommy avoided eye contact and Jude continuously played with her hair. She couldn't hold it in anymore as the parking lot great more and more awkward. "Tommy hit Darius."

"Shoved!" Tommy exclaimed as he leaped from his leaning position. "It was only a little push."

Jude crossed her arms over her chest and added, "That sent him flying across the room!"

Kwest simply stood in awe, but Tommy felt the need to explain to him about he situation. "He was on both of our cases, and then he said some really low stuff about Jude."

"Hey, I'm not judging," Kwest responded calmly. "Look, I'll go in there and see what's up. I'll let you guys know as soon as I find out."

"Thanks, Kwest." Tommy and Kwest shared the handshake, signature to their teamwork.

Both Jude and Tommy watched Kwest as he entered the restaurant. As he stepped into the doorway, Kwest turned around to wink at the couple, then proceeded in. They laughed at the Kwest charm and entered the Viper. Tommy started the car and asked, "Where to?" 


	12. Chapter 12

"Anywhere but here," Jude cooed softly.

Tommy smiled at her and sped out of the parking lot. They hit all the lights right, zooming past the park. As they passed Jude's school, they heard a bell go off, signaling a class period's beginning. "Are you sure it's okay if you miss another day?"

Keeping her eyes fixed on the school as they passed, Jude exhaled deeply. "Not in the mood to answer random classmates' questions about Shay. I want to enjoy the rest of my day." 

"Then I've got the perfect thing." Tommy glance over his shoulder and winked at Jude. He figured, it made her laugh when Kwest did it, maybe he could get something out of her this time too.

She couldn't help but giggle. It was surprising enough when Shay was macking on her, but with Tommy it was like a dream come true. Jude just couldn't hide her happiness when Tommy would make her glow.

Tommy and Jude enjoyed the car ride. They sang along with the radio and joked with each other. They even threw in the occasional kiss. They looked and felt like any other couple, and that fact made their relationship even better. Tommy and Jude never expected a normal life, especially while dating, but that's what they did to each other. They made one another feel normal.

The Viper pulled into a garage, almost suddenly to Jude. Tommy went around the car and opened the door for Jude. He led her to another door in the garage and opened it, sending her through.

Jude walked through the door, entering a room with soft, pastel green walls. Turing the corner, Jude entered another room with dull yellow walls and red leather furniture. On an antique looking coffee table sat stacks of sheet music and a guitar leaning against the side. The matching corner table held a red vase of giant sunflowers. Jude slid her fingers upon the petals and realized the elegant touch of sunflowers was real.

"You like my place?" Tommy asked, throwing his keys onto the hook on the wall.

Jude glanced around, judging the room. "It's not how I would've imagined Tom Quincy's bachelor pad…" Jude turned her attention to Tommy and finished, "I love it."

Tommy took off his jacket and placed it on the back of his red leather recliner. "So what did you expect my place to be like?"

Wrapping his arm around her, Tommy and Jude sat down on the sofa, cuddling. "First of all, I didn't expect you to have a house. Maybe more like… A penthouse."

"Too… Pimp. I'm not a pimp."

Jude and Tommy had a laugh. "Good to know. I'll cross that off my list of possible Quincy conspiracies." She surveyed the room again, now noticing a small bowl of potpourri by the sheet music. "Second, I would think you'd go more GQ… Not so Martha Stewart."

"Oh…" Tommy tickled Jude slightly. "So I'm Martha Stewart-like now?"

"I didn't say you were," Jude said, trying to get Tommy to stop tickling. "I said your place is."

He continued to tickle her until he planted a kiss on her lips. He brought her back to his chest and held her. Tommy sighed in contempt and asked, "Anything else?"

Gazing up into his mysterious eyes, Jude smiled. "It's perfect."

"Perfect's good," Tommy replied. He looked around the place, similar to Jude's initial reaction. He whispered softly to himself, "She made it this way…"

When Jude heard Tommy, her heart skipped a beat. She didn't know how to react to such a comment. Jude didn't really know what goes on in Tommy's life outside of the studio and music. Everyday, Jude and Tommy were learning more about each other, but was this something she really wanted to know?

Jude pushed Tommy away and sat up straight. Fluffing her bangs slightly, she asked calmly, "Who?"

Tommy could see the concern on Jude's face as she spoke. For a moment, he didn't even realize what she was asking. Tommy came to the conclusion he had accidentally blurted out something important just minutes earlier. He rubbed the back of his neck, not wanting to talk bout who she was, but when he looked at Jude, he knew he had to. Tommy needed to clear his name. "My--My aunt."

"This is her place?"

"Was her place," Tommy said as an instant depression swam over him. "She died a few years back."

Jude kept her eyes on Tommy as she could see him on the verge of tears. She gently stroked his cheek. "I'm sorry."

Sniffling, Tommy pulled Jude's hand down to hold it. "I am too," he said as tears escaped his eyes. "She… She was a great woman. She didn't deserve to die like that."

Jude brought Tommy to her chest, comforting him. She didn't want to make it worse, but she felt like Tommy still needed to get some more out of his system. "How did she…"

"Alone." Tommy raised himself from Jude's body and stood. He didn't like feeling so vulnerable, even if that meant Jude would hold him. He got so frustrated he needed to pace back and forth, letting out some emotion. "I should've been here, but I was too busy being Mr. Hotshot." 

Tommy wept into his hands, facing away from Jude. She stood and stroked his shoulder, but he pulled away from her touch. Jude wanted to help him, but she didn't know what she could do. "Tommy…"

"I was on tour, posing as something I hated while this amazing woman was dying, Jude!" Tommy grabbed his guitar and wrapped his hands tightly around it. "She took care of me, and treated me like her own son. And what did I do?" he asked, raising his voice. Tommy swiftly and roughly threw the guitar against the wall, causing the case to shatter. "I let her die!"

Swinging the hysterical Tommy around, Jude held him tightly against herself. "Shh… Shh…" She whispered softly, trying to calm him down.

"I should've been here… She deserved better… I… I… I let her die alone…" Tommy bawled into Jude's shoulder, gasping for air and trying to speak.

All Jude could do was hold him, the truth being she didn't know all of the facts. She swayed him from side to side, trying to keep her own tears back. She felt his arms wrap around her, and his heavy head sunk into her shoulder. Running her fingers through his hair, Jude repeatedly kissed his neck, showing as much support as possible. 


	13. Chapter 13

Tommy shook in Jude's arms as they cuddled on the soft, tan carpet. His tears head died down, but neither of them could shake that just an hour earlier, Tommy broke down. Tommy's eyes had been dry for at least ten minutes, but only silence was found in the house.

A while after the last, Jude kissed Tommy's head. Almost immediately, the kiss seemed to snap Tommy out of his depressed trance. He spoke softly, "I've never told anybody what I did to my aunt before…"

Not wanting to drive Tommy into hysterical mode again, Jude said kindly, "We don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

"I want to." Tommy sat up to face Jude and looked deeply into her eyes. "My aunt, Karen, was unbelievable. She was this amazing artist who was just full of life and love. She loved taking care of people, like it was just part of her nature. Even when her husband died, she wouldn't let anyone take care of her because she needed to care for everyone else."

Jude stared back into Tommy's eyes. "She sounds amazing."

"She was all about dreams," Tommy continued. Tommy took Jude's hand in his, hoping it would help him from breaking. "Karen was the one that convinced my parents to let me move into the city so I could pursue my music career. Whatever free time she had, she would help me send out demo tapes. Karen gave me a home and a future."

Tommy closed his eyes, pushing back his tears and clearing his throat. "Then I got the Boyz Attack deal and we started spending less time together. I was working a lot in the studio, and publicizing, and then we went on tour." Tommy covered his mouth briefly while he breathed deeply. "A week before she died, she asked me to take a break from the tour and come home for a while… I refused… And then she was gone."

"Tommy…" Jude crawled closer to Tommy and hugged him. "You didn't know."

"But I should've!" Tommy replied. "If I had paid any attention at all, I would've known she was sick, Jude. She… She had cancer! She was diagnosed for years, and I was completely oblivious to it! She didn't even tell me…"

Jude could feel her own tears approaching as Tommy's story came to a finish. "She was probably just trying to protect you."

"I just wish…" Tommy started. "I wish she would've let me protect her."

Biting her bottom lip, Jude debated telling him her thoughts. I don't want you to take this the wrong way… But what could you have done, Tommy? It was just her time."

At first, Tommy looked painfully into Jude's eyes, but he knew she was right. He might not have been able to save her, but he could've been better to her. "Then I guess I wish I had come back that week. Just teaches you not to take things for granted…"

"Yeah," Jude whispered softly. "I--"

A rhythmic tune played in Tommy's jacket on the recliner. Tommy stood and retrieved his phone. "What's up, Kwest?" he asked as if he had nothing wrong. Jude could only hear a dull, mumbled response from Kwest's end. "You're crazy if you're going to do that," Tommy commented as Kwest went on. "Don't say I didn't warn you. See you tonight."

Tommy shoved his phone in his pocket and picked Jude up off the floor. Jude eyed Tommy and asked, "Why is Kwest such a crazy man?"

"He's Shay's new producer," Tommy responded bitterly. "He's too big of a deal for Georgia to drop… So he's staying at G Major with Kwest."

Jude could hear the angered tone in his voice. "I'm sorry. I know Shay's new album would've been great for you."

Giving Jude a shocked expression, Tommy asked, "Me? No…" Tommy shook his head and smoothed Jude's hair in the back. "I don't care if they want to give my gig to Kwest. I just don't want that kid stinking up G Major anymore."

Tilting her head upwards, Tommy teased her, pulling away multiple times before planting a kiss on her. Jude leaned backwards in his arms, giving enough distance so she could make eye contact. "I want to know more about you, Tommy. We have this unbelievable connection, but I don't know anything about your past… I want to know."

"You will. We'll know everything about each other. We have time…" Tommy replied as he inched closer for another smooch.

Suddenly breaking away from his lips, Jude repeated, "Time!" Jude flashed glances around the room, searching for a clock. "What time is it?"

Tommy reached for his phone and announced, "It's 12:45. Do you need to be somewhere?"

Running her fingers halfway through her hair, Jude grabbed her head and paced slightly. "I was supposed to meet Kat and Jamie half an hour ago."

"Does anyone go to school anymore?" Tommy asked.

Jude took a quick break from tying her shoes to give Tommy a dirty glare. "They got excused to work on Kat's fashion show. Jamie and I are modeling, so she needs our measurements. Oh, and we need to help make the set…" Jude rambled on.

"Jude," Tommy called out to stop her. "I'll get you there. Come on." Walking out the same way they went in, Tommy grabbed Jude's hand and raced out the door. 


	14. Chapter 14

Approaching Kat's house, Jude gave Tommy a quick kiss and undid her seatbelt. "I'll see you tonight," she called out as she leaped out of the Viper.

She ran up to the door and knocked, as Tommy waited to make sure she'd get in. Swinging the door open, Kat replied, "Well, if it isn't Ms. Harrison. I'm so glad you could fit us in your busy schedule."

"I'm sorry." Jude entered Kat's house to see Jamie standing on a platform with half of a tight, lacey shirt on. "That's a nice look for you, Jamie."

Kat walked over to Jamie and helped him take the shirt off. "Actually, this is part of your outfit. I just wasn't sure if you'd show."

Jude grabbed Kat's busy hands and looked her straight in the eye. "I'm sorry, Kat. I can explain…" Jude started.

Suddenly, she froze and realized she couldn't explain. Her relationship with Tommy is a secret, and she promised she wouldn't break that. Jude didn't want to lose him, even if that meant hiding from her friends.

"Well?" Jamie stated, awaiting Jude's continuation.

Shaking her head, Jude escaped her thoughts of Tommy. She replied, "It's not important. I'm here now, so we can get to working."

"Hey!" Jamie exclaimed, a little bitterness in his voice. "The explanation is important. I'd like to hear that I wasn't just dressed in a very nice lace number so you could sneak around and take a joyride with the producer you have the hots for."

"He--He gave me a ride because I was running late." Jude ran her fingers through the roots of her hair. "There's no sneaking."

Both Kat and Jamie looked downwards at their feet. Noticing he was still without a shirt, Jamie crossed his arms over his chest with slight embarrassment and said, "It's kinda chilly in here, isn't it?" He quickly left the room and went to retrieve a shirt.

"Did I miss something?" Jude asked, feeling more than a little out of place. She couldn't help but think there was something the two of them knew. Maybe, they knew something about her and Tommy.

Kat's eyes followed Jamie into the other room. She nervously chuckled, "Actually, we have something we want to talk to you about."

Biting her lip and nodding her head, Jude replied, "Alright."

Following after Jamie, Kat led Jude into the other room. All three of them took a seat on the couch and stared at each other awkwardly. Jamie fiddled with the buttons on his shirt as he repeatedly misjudged the button alignment. "Stupid buttons…" he murmured to himself under his breath.

"Must be something big if it's caused Jamie to forget how to dress himself," Jude commented with a nervous giggle. She combed through her bangs with her fingers and asked, "What's the deal?"

Glancing over his shoulder at Kat, Jamie took a deep breath and then faced Jude sitting across from him. "I think we all understand that… Relationships develop when we least expect them…"

Jude's eyes widened, fearing her friends knew something they shouldn't. "And…" she said impatiently.

"What Jamie's trying to say is…" Kat reached across the coffee table for Jude's hand and held it softly. She continued, "We've been dating for a month."

Jamie furrowed his brow towards Jude and quickly added as if he were being interrogated, "And a half!"

Jude flashed looks between the two of them and repeated, "You guys have been dating for a month… And a half." A smile broke on her face with a sigh of relief. She joked, "Where have I been?"

Leaning forward, Jamie grabbed Jude's other hand and squeezed it caringly. "So you're not mad?"

"Mad?" Jude pulled both of her hands away from her friends. "Why would I be mad?" Jude asked with a smile still on her face.

Kat looked intensely into Jude's eyes, trying to rate her level of seriousness. "Well, we did wait a good amount of time before telling you."

"Whoa!" Jamie quickly blurted out. "Don't give her reasons, Kat. Maybe she didn't think of that!"

Both Kat and Jude rolled their eyes at Jamie. After a moment, they could only laugh at the overly concerned look on his face. "Calm down before you have a stroke," Kat stated, rubbing Jamie's shoulder.

Still uneasy, Jamie asked, "So we're cool?"

"Better than cool," Jude replied sincerely. "My two best friends are dating. And I haven't seen you guys this happy in a long time. It's all good."

Watching Jude, Kat got a weird feeling. "You're pretty happy yourself." 


	15. Chapter 15

Jude ran her fingers through her hair and shyly responded, "I'm just happy for you guys."

Nodding, Kat threw at her, "You can't fool me, Jude Harrison! What's the reason for your change in spirits?"

"Nothing. I--"

Kat stared Jude deeply in the eye with a giant grin. "Something awesome happened at the meeting, yes?"

Loudly slapping his hands together once, Jamie stated, "Georgia kicked Shay to the curb!"

In an attempt to hide her smile, Jude shook her head and replied, "The meeting was cancelled. At least for me and Tommy."

"What does that mean?" Jamie asked with concern.

Sill, Kat grew even more excited for her best friend. "So you and Lil' Tommy Q?" Kat questioned suggestively. "And I though he was only giving you a ride."

Defensively, Jude replied, "He did."

Both Jamie and Kat tried to read Jude, looking into her eyes and analyzing her actions and body language. Kat brought herself to one conclusion as Jamie tried to find any and every way around it. Even if he was with Kat, Jude's his best friend. She's like a sister to him, and he needed to protect her.

Hiding his frustrations, Jamie asked, "And what else did 'he did'?"

"Jamie!" Kat exclaimed as she smacked his thigh.

Putting her hands on their knees, Jude tried to soothe them. "You guys, nothing is going on with me and Tommy. I was kinda mad at him because--" Jude stopped herself, remembering people still couldn't know what they shared on her birthday. Not even her best friends could know. "--Because he was right about Shay. But today he apologized and I apologized, and we're good now."

Jamie's jumbled nerves finally calmed down. "So we can all be on the happy train now! How about popcorn on the runway?" Jamie asked as he stood.

Kat looked up at his and replied, "Fine. Just don't get butter on the clothes."

"Yes, ma'am!" Jamie shouted as he saluted Kat and left for the kitchen.

Both Jude and Kat shared a giggle. Jude started to stand, but Kat grabbed Jude's hand before it left her knee. She returned to her seated position, but Kat leaned forward, holding her hand tightly.

In a low tone, Kat whispered, "If you're afraid Jamie's gonna freak, you can tell me."

"There's nothing to tell," Jude stated.

Kat released Jude's hand and stood, but still kept her voice quiet. "Maybe you really are hurt that we didn't tell you, so now you're keeping secrets. I know that there's something big, Jude. I know it because I know you."

Also standing, Jude refuted, "Wouldn't Jamie know too then? Kat, there is no reason for me to be hurt, and there are no secrets." Jude suddenly got a grimy taste in her mouth, nearly foaming with lies.

With a straight face, Kat looked Jude dead in the eye. "I'm not wrong, Jude. Jamie can't see it because he doesn't want to see it. And if you don't trust me enough to tell me, that's fine. Let's just get to work." Kat made her way towards the door, defeated.

Feeling a rush of guilt, Jude grabbed Kat's hand before she could fully exit. "Promise not to tell Jamie or anyone else?"

"Jude!" Kat exclaimed defensively. She gave Jude a deeply hurt and impatient look.

Feeling slightly petty, Jude still felt the need for reassurance. "Please, Kat."

Shrugging her shoulders, Kat replied, "Of course. I promise, Jude." 


	16. Chapter 16

Swallowing hard, Jude took a deep breath. She couldn't believe she was going to tell Kat, but she wasn't going to sacrifice a friendship like theirs. "Tommy… Well, Tommy kissed my on my birthday. And--"

"Tom Quincy kissed you?" Kat shrieked in excitement.

"Kat!" Jude pulled Kat back to the couch and sat her down. "Remember the not telling Jamie so he doesn't freak? Well, I think the whole neighborhood knows now."

Calming down, Kat replied, "Sorry. Go on."

Jude thought long and hard about what she was going to say next. Kat could hardly handle the first half of the story. "You know how I feel about Tommy…" Jude could almost feel Kat's heart racing, but she didn't move a muscle. "He told me to pretend like the kiss never happened, or he had to quit working at G Major with me. And-and it felt like he only kissed me because of what Shay did. But I heard him talking to Kwest about me, remember?"

Nodding her head repeatedly, Kat responded, "Yeah."

"I hated him for it. He made dealing with Shay and my dad even harder." Jude ran her fingers through her hair and cleared her throat. "And today… We just talking a lot about everything."

"Well that's good," Kat stated calmly. Quietly, but with excitement, Kat threw in, "And then you guys kissed some more?"

A smile broke on Jude's face. It seemed as if Tommy's kisses weren't just on her mind, but Kat's too. Jude even melted a little just thinking about the next time she could kiss him. In secret, that is. Everything was still a secret, and she had to keep her mouth shut. "No. We're just… Friends. Again."

Kat nodded, looking away from Jude. "Wow. And I thought you were finally going to tell me the truth," she said with a bitter tone.

Shocked, Jude started, "Kat--"

"No," Kat interjected. "I believe everything about your birthday. The way Tommy stood up to Shay and ran after you, and the stuff he said to Kwest, and just the way he was looking at you, I expected at least a kiss. That's the truth. And maybe if you didn't want to talk anymore, or you couldn't say anymore, you could've just told me," Kat rambled on quietly with frustration. "But I just asked you a question and you flat out lied to my face without any trouble."

"Kat, I--" Jude started, confused and hurt by Kat's pain.

"I saw you, Jude," Kat interrupted again. "I thought I hear the Viper, so I looked out the window and caught you kissing Tommy. It could've been a 'just friends' kiss, but I know you. It wasn't, was it? Wait! Don't answer that. It might just be more lies anyways."

Kat sat silently and gave Jude a cold glare. Jude wanted to say something to make it better, but she couldn't. That very moment she realized what a hypocrite she was.

Walking into the room with a giant bowl of popcorn, Jamie called out, "I'm ready to get to work!" He paused and looked at the faces of the two girls, suddenly noticing the tension. "Maybe I should to pop some more corn," Jamie stated in an uneasy tone.

Trying not to bring him into the situation, Jude joked, "That's enough popcorn to feed everyone at G Major-- Including Shay's ego." I think you've made enough." Jude smiled sweetly at Jamie and added, "Let's just work."

"Wait," Jamie held out his hand to halt Jude from going to their work station. "Shay's staying at G Major?"

Running her fingers through her hair, Jude sighed and replied, "Yup."

With a slight smile on his face, Jamie stated, "I don't exactly like Tommy, but that's a nice little predicament Georgia's put him in."

Jude pushed Jamie casually by the shoulder. She gave him a look of disbelief, but quickly wiped the expression away, aware of the way Kat was watching her. "Kwest is going to be Shay's producer."

"So you and Lil' Tommy Q… Alone at last," Jamie added in a sickened voice.

"Speaking of Tommy and G Major…" Kat started as she observed Jude's frightened expression and Jamie's curiosity. She didn't want to hide anything from him, but she wasn't going to be a bad friend to Jude either. If anything, all she was going to do was keep her promise not to tell Jamie what they talked about. "You should probably get ready for that party tonight. Jamie and I can handle the rest of the work."

"It's ok. I can--" Jude spoke.

In a stern tone, Kat stopped Jude to say, "No. It's fine. You can go."

Jude took the hint and gathered her things. She made her way towards the door, but turned back to her friends. "You guys are coming tonight, right?"

With a scoff, Jamie asked, "Have I missed a Jude Harrison performance yet?" and he wrapped her arm around her shoulders, giving her a short, warm hug.

Nodding her head, Jude smiled at Jamie. She then turned her attention to Kat. Kat's arms were folded neatly across her chest, and her mouth nearly sagged to a frown. "What about you, Kat?"

"I go where the dork goes," Kat replied with a slight smirk.

"Then I'll se you guys tonight," Jude commented with a bright smile. 


	17. Chapter 17

Opening the front door to her house, Jude ran into Sadie, going down the stairs. "Hey," she said softly.

"Hey," Sadie replied as she turned towards the living room. She plopped herself down on the sofa and stated, "Tom Quincy was looking for you this morning."

Clearing her throat, Jude thought about their morning. "Really?" she stated as if she didn't already know.

Sadie nodded her head at Jude as Jude sat next to her older sister. "He said he wanted to give you a ride to G Major for the meeting."

Jude's mind went to the front steps of G Major where they resolved some problems. She couldn't help but smile until she met Sadie's eyes and quickly tried to hide it. "Oh yeah. The meeting."

"Must have been one hell of a meeting," Sadie threw at her in a less than happy voice.

Jude turned her entire body to position herself to face Sadie. "What do you mean?" she asked calmly.

Without looking at her, Sadie replied, "Well, you missed another entire day of school, and you seem to be in pretty good spirit for having two guys break your heart."

Biting her bottom lip, Jude nodded as she took in what Sadie was saying. "So, I'm dealing, Sadie. Is that such a bad thing?"

"No, Jude. Good for you," Sadie said as she gently patted Jude's knee. "Just be careful."

Confused, Jude commented, "Sadie, I don't understand. What are you talking about?"

Still avoiding eye contact, Sadie played with her hair. Checking her locks for split ends, she answered, "You've just had your heart handed to you on a plate by two different guys, one of them being our dad. Don't let the third do the same."

"Third?"

Sadie turned to look Jude in the eye. She sighed as she realized her sister really didn't understand. As kindly as possible, Sadie asked, "How can you be so naïve? Tom, Jude. He's your third." Sadie's eyes watered a little, but it wasn't anything she couldn't hold back. She continued, "He's in love with you, and you're obviously in love with him."

Trying to protect her relationships with both Tommy and Sadie, Jude started, "We're not--"

"You are. You both are." Sadie turned completely around, making sure her sister wouldn't see her sniffling to keep back the tears. She returned, "The guy doesn't keep on checking up on you for no reason, Jude. You guys can keep on saying that your just friends, or coworkers, or whatever. But I know better."

Jude could feel Sadie's pain. She could even see the hidden tears. The real reason she knew what Sadie was going through is because she went through it too. Jude felt the same way when she thought she lost Tommy to Sadie at the farm. She knew her connection with Tommy was stronger than anything he had with Sadie, she just had to explain it to her big sister. "We just-- We get each other."

Nodding, Sadie added in, "And love each other."

Slightly exhausted, Just started, "Sadie--"

"Deny it all you want," Sadie said ash she stood. "Just know it's not he truth."

Watching Sadie run up the stairs, Jude fell backwards to lay on the couch. She closed her eyes to try and collect her thoughts, but was quickly shocked by the slamming sound that cam from Sadie's bedroom door. Jude could only sigh, thinking about how she hurt both Sadie and Kat.

Her phone vibrated in her pocket. Quickly retrieving it, Jude flipped the phone open to see Tommy's picture flash. "Hello," she answered.

"Hey there," Tommy said joyfully. "I don't know how much longer I can handle without you."

His soft, yet masculine, voice soothed her worries dully. "I know," she replied simply. She had so much on her mind, even Tommy wasn't enough to ease her.

Feeling the distance between them, in more ways than one, his happiness turned to concern. "Hey, what's wrong?" he asked to the silent end of the phone line.

"Nothing," Jude lied. She didn't mean to lie to Tommy, but she was getting so used to avoiding the subject of her troubles. She realized what she had said and quickly added, "I-I've just had an interesting day."

"I hope some of your day you'd consider good," Tommy remarked skeptically.

Jude sat up and played with a rip in her jeans. She smiled a little and said, "Some parts of my day were absolutely amazing… It's the other parts that weren't so hot."

Understanding her mood wasn't exactly about him, he asked, "So what happened?"

Sighing into the phone, Jude ripped a stray thread from the ripped denim. "I'm not good at lying," she blurted out. "And that's what we're doing. We're lying about us."

Clearing his throat, Tommy straightened his posture. He never thought of himself as a liar, and the person he cared about most was calling him one. Still worse, yet again, he was the reason for Jude's pain. "We're not lying, Jude."

"You're right," Jude instantly answered. "You're not lying. I am. Kwest happened to catch us, and you got to tell him the truth."

By the tone of Jude's voice, he could tell what she was referring to. "Did Jamie catch us, Jude?"

Holding up her heavy head with the palm of her hand, Jude answered, "No, but Kat did. And-and I tried to lie because you told me to keep us a secret."

"I didn't tell you to lie though," Tommy replied defensively. "I just didn't want the whole work knowing before we figured things out."

Jude grew angry with Tommy. "So I messed up, and none of it has to do with you, right?"

"No!" Tommy exclaimed.

"Whatever, Tommy," Jude bitterly spoke into the phone. "I have a party to get ready for."

As Jude rudely hung up the phone, Tommy looked at his phone in disbelieve. "Damn it," he muttered to himself and his mistakes.

Jude gripped the cushions of the sofa, breathing hard. She couldn't believe Tommy would first make her lie, and then deny it when it turned badly. She grew tense and her fingers itched to strum out her emotion. Exhaling deeply for the last time, Jude had a burst of inspiration for a song. 


	18. Chapter 18

Walking into the club, Jude looked straight across the room to see a cold stare from both Darius and Shay. It made her nervous at first, but when she saw Tommy at the side of the club, she stood bold and returned the look to Shay and Darius. Even more deadly, she flashed a look at Tommy and then made her way to Georgia and EJ.

"Hey!" EJ called out to Jude.

Jude smiled and directed to both Georgia and EJ, "Hi."

Georgia noticed Jude's tense movements and glares. Noticing the glare towards Tommy, she grew concerned. Subtly, she sent EJ away. "Will you go check on who we're still waiting for?"

Checking out the crowded club, EJ replied, "Sure." She made her way over to the front door and spoke with the bouncers.

Jude watched her, trying to ignore Darius, Shay, and Tommy, but it only made her more obvious to Georgia. Trying to ease Jude, Georgia put her arm around Jude's shoulder and asked, "Are you ready to perform tonight?"

Jumping at the opportunity, Jude stated, "Actually, I have a change in my set if it's okay."

"So now you ask? Last time you just sang that poor boy's heart out," Georgia commented, referring to "Skin" and Shay.

Innocently, Jude replied, "Yeah… I thought I might change things up after singing my dad's heart out."

A little shocked by the correction, Georgia rubbed Jude's back. "You do what you think is best. You killed it last time because everyone could feel what you were singing. If you have to change you performance to do it again, then so be it." Giving Jude one last pat on the back, Georgia walked away to join Darius and Shay.

Jude looked around, hoping to find a friendly face to keep her company. Looking up, Jude saw Kwest at the balcony turntables and decided to join him. Climbing the stairs, many people stopped to greet her, and even took some pictures, making the final destination even sweeter. "Kwest!"

"Hey, Jude," he said with delight. "What's up?"

On the first floor of the club, she could see Shay and Darius mingling. When she spotted Tommy, his eyes were already fixed on her. Pretending like she didn't notice or care, she turned back to Kwest. "I just thought you could use some company."

Reaching for his water bottle, Kwest responded, "You do know I'm Kwest, right?" Leaving a moment for Jude to be confused, he took a drink of water before continuing. "You came up here to stay away from all of that," Kwest said before nodding downwards.

"True," Jude admitted. "But I could've just gone somewhere other than here."

Kwest smirked and added, "But you wanted to keep an eye on things… On Tommy."

Crossing her arms over her chest, Jude leaned back against the turntable. "Tommy can do whatever he wants."

"Like tell me you guys had a fight?" Kwest checked for Jude's shocked expression out of the corner of his eye. "Because he did."

"Tommy was telling me what to do, and I didn't like it," Jude replied simply.

Looking down, Kwest sighed deeply. "He didn't mean any harm, Jude."

"He didn't mean for it, but it still happened," Jude stated. "Let me put it this way: He told you what happened today from this morning to the fight, right?"

"Yeah," Kwest answered as he looked at Jude puzzled.

Jude coldly stated, "I wasn't allowed to tell anyone. One of my best friends and my sister figured it out, and all they really know is I lied to them."

Kwest took his headset completely off. He only uncovered one ear to talk to Jude when she had first come to talk, but he needed all his thoughts for this. And what he had to say must be important to tear Kwest away from mixing. "It sounds like you've had a rough day, and I can see how you'd want to blame Tommy. He made a mistake, Jude. People make mistakes. Even you."

Not able to look him in the eye, Jude only whispered, "But he told me to lie."

"He told you not to tell," Kwest corrected. "It's a fine line, but it's still there."

Calmly, Jude asked, "So you think I was wrong?"

Kwest moved closer to Jude, getting in her face so she had to look at him. "Truthfully, both of you were wrong. He didn't tell you to lie, but he shouldn't have asked you to keep it a secret either. You guys love each other. That should be enough."

"It should," Jude agreed. "But that doesn't mean it is."

Both Jude and Kwest turned their heads to see Tommy watching them. They stood silently with Tommy biting his bottom lip with his hands in his pockets. "You should get ready for your set," Tommy said, slightly pained, to Jude. 


	19. Chapter 19

Watching Jude make her way to the stage from above, Tommy sighed. He stated, ""I was just trying to protect her."

"I know, man," Kwest replied. He watched Jude slide behind the curtain of the stage and added, "It's not too late."

With a deep sigh, Tommy confessed, "Everything's just so hard with her."

Kwest cocked his head back with an expression of disbelief. "Is it supposed to be easy?" Kwest questioned.

Shrugging, Tommy sighed and stated, "I don't know." Tommy sunk his head downwards and rubbed his forehead with his palm.

"Chill," Kwest told Tommy with a pat on his shoulder. In a low, calm tone, Kwest asked, "Things are more difficult with Jude, right?"

Tommy thought about the question and replied with a soft, "Yeah."

To show he took in the information, Kwest nodded. "Is that going to stop you from loving her?" Kwest asked with ease.

"No," Tommy answered instantly. "I don't think anything could stop me from loving that girl."

Kwest flashed Tommy a smirk of approval. With a nod, he responded, "Then work on your relationship. Fight for it. Fight for her."

"How's everyone doing tonight!" EJ questioned the crowd. She stood on the stage dressed in a whimsical green top and a white miniskirt. She spoke cheerfully into the microphone and waited for the audience's cheers to die down a little. She continued, "And here's the hottest girl that will rock you world… Jude Harrison!"

Leaning over the balcony, Tommy watched the curtains slowly open. Jude and her backup band immediately started playing "24 Hours" and got the club dancing. Tommy watched her so closely he even caught the few glances Jude shot in his direction during her performance. Even if those looks were dirty or filled with disgust, Tommy knew what the had to do.

After the song, Jude turned to her band and whispered something. She strummed a few soft chords as the drummer played a quiet and simply beat. The song was unfamiliar to the entire crowd, including the band. The only person not shocked by the song choice was Georgia as she stood to the side of the stage and sipped on her drink.

Jude started singing, deep and sultry.

_"Why can't I just give up?  
After all this I've had enough  
Maybe we can't even be friends  
Never enough to make amends._

I wish I was stronger  
But in my heart your soul still lingers

Should I pretend I don't care?  
Lie to everyone  
Why is this so damn unfair?  
Please tell me  
How am I supposed to feel  
How can I possibly deal  
When pretending we're not real?

Our fighting seems so petty  
We've been through so much already  
We meet here once again  
Never ready to tie loose ends.

I wish I was stronger  
But in my mind your kiss still lingers

Should I pretend I don't care?  
Lie to everyone  
Why is this so damn unfair?  
Please tell me  
How am I supposed to feel  
How can I possibly deal  
When pretending we're not real?

Are you ready to tell me what to say?  
Are you ready to tell me what to do?  
I'm getting tired of pushing you away.  
I can't keep falling for you.

You pretend you don't care  
Lie to everyone  
This couldn't be more unfair  
You tell me  
Just how I'm supposed to feel  
That's I just need to deal  
To pretend we're not real."

Still not too shocked, Georgia looked upwards at Kwest's balcony. She could only wonder what was going through Tom Quincy's head at that moment. After that song, she was already tapped into Jude's feelings, and it wasn't a pretty picture.

Almost with ease, Jude started with the next song. She sang "Me Out of Me" with more fire than usual, probably still feeing off of the previous song.

Tommy could only watch in awe. He heard what Kwest was saying earlier and he understood how he was wrong to Jude. Now he could actually feel her pain and realized where it was all coming from and why.

Out in the crow, Kat gripped Jamie's hand tight. She felt bad for blowing up at Jude the way she did. They ended it in peace earlier, but it easily couldn't have. She was just happy not much harm had been done to her friends with Jude.

Then there was Sadie that sat at the bar. She gulped hard when she ingested what her sister sang. She knew she was horrible to Jude and Jude felt badly about tit. But she also knew that she really had lost Tommy to Jude, so she ordered herself another drink.

Most of the crow danced and sang along, enjoying the show. But the people closest to Jude couldn't enjoy themselves. They just stared and listened. 


	20. Chapter 20

When Jude finished, the curtain closed and she went backstage to her dressing room. Jude ran her fingers through her hair as she sat down in front of her vanity. As she looked up into the mirror, she caught Tommy's reflection standing behind her.

It scared her at first, but when she realized it was Tommy, she turned to face him. "Can I help you?"

"I'm sorry…" Tommy stated with complete sincerity. "About everything."

Jude bit her lip and nodded her head. She could tell he really was sorry and didn't mean any harm. At the same time, she felt like Tommy was a broken record, always apologizing. "Doesn't that sound familiar…" Jude sarcastically commented.

Taking the verbal hit, Tommy remembered his conversation with Kwest. He cleared his throat and continued, "It's what I have to do to make things right."

"Or you could try keeping things right instead of-of--"

"Messing up?" Tommy questioned. "I'm human, Jude."

"We just…" Jude stood up in frustration, pacing around and avoiding Tommy's eyes. "We always get in these stupid arguments, then drop them and get into the next one."

Tommy took a seat on the couch against the wall. He slouched forward with his hands linked together. "Another stupid cycle, right?"

Jude stopped and glance over her shoulder at Tommy. She sighed and expressed, "Exactly."

As Jude started to pace again, she made her way in front of Tommy. He quickly looked up and grabbed her arm as she passed. Jude spun around as Tommy stood. She fell into his arms and he kissed her hard.

Even as Jude slowly pulled back, Tommy gently cradled the back of her neck as he could a baby's. He still held her body close to his, and he wasn't going to let go as he stated, "It makes this a whole lot better."

Simply staring into his eyes, Jude stated, "It's just so hard."

Mimicking Kwest, Tommy questioned, "Is it supposed to be easy?" After Jude's sigh of a response, Tommy continued, "We're gonna go through some bad stuff, Jude. We're gonna argue and have fights because we always challenge each other. We make each other better."

"Great," Jude commented sarcastically. "I don't want to fight all the time."

"We won't!" Tommy exclaimed. "We'll make up. And we'll fight and we'll make up again. As stupid as it is, we'll keep on doing it because we care about each other." Tommy took a short break from his rambling to catch his breath and thoughts. "I love you, Jude. No petty, little argument is going to change that."

Loosening her body, Jude let Tommy hold her close again. "I love you, too."

"Then we'll make it work," he replied simply and softly. They shared a kiss with a better understanding of their relationship.

It was like magic until a voice called out, "Jude!" The door swung open to expose Jude an Tommy breaking away from their kiss. Jamie could only stare and sigh, "Jude…"

Backing away from Tommy and moving closer to Jamie, Jude pleaded, "This isn't what it looks like."

Jamie kept his eyes on Tom Quincy, almost in a blind rage. "Looks like I just caught the two of you making out."

"We…" Jude started. She flashed glances between Tommy and Jamie in a panic. "We were--"

"So it is what it looks like," Tommy interjected.

Breathing deeply, Jamie clenched his jaw and gave Tommy a deadly look. Without taking his eyes off of him, Jamie spoke to Jude. "Did he force himself on you?"

"No!" Jude exclaimed, and then scoffed with disgust.

Jamie made his hands into fists, trying to keep in his anger. "Then what happened?"

Inching closer to Jamie, Jude stood directly between the two. She tried to calm Jamie, but she couldn't. She couldn't even get him to look at her. Completely flustered, she replied, "Nothing--"

"We happened," Tommy answered coolly. "We're a we now."

Anger suddenly turning into sadness, Jamie's heart sunk into his chest. His bold stance and glare dropped, now looking pitifully into Jude's eyes. "We…" he said as he nodded. Jamie brought his head back up to look at Tommy and quickly made his way over to him.

Jamie grabbed Tommy by his shirt, ready to punch him, but kept both hands gripped on the shirt. He held Tommy close to him and breathed deeply, panting in frustration. He said quietly, "Do you have any idea how wrong that is?" He shook Tommy by the shirt and questioned, "Do you know how old you are? And then to seduce a sixteen-year-old?"

As Jamie shook Tommy again, Jude stepped in and pulled on one of Jamie's arms. "Stop it! Stop it, Jamie!"

Gripping his shirt tighter, Jamie wouldn't let go of Tommy. "You knew she had a crush on you, so you took advantage of it," Jamie stated toward Tommy with disgust in his voice.

"That's not true," Tommy calmly replied.

Jamie pulled his shirt together again, and shook him hard. "Then what's the truth!" Jamie yelled.

"Jamie!" Jude shouted, trying to get him to stop, still handing off of his arm.

"You wanna know the truth?" Tommy asked back in a loud manner. He hated being pushed around in this way, especially by someone like Jamie. Even so, he could see Jude was extremely distressed, and he calmed himself. "The truth is I love Jude."

Jamie's courageous front dropped. He slowly released Tommy, but still violently shook his arm free from Jude. He looked at her with enough pain in his eyes to end the world. Jamie had never been so hurt by one statement in his entire life.

Tears streamed from Jude's eyes as she could feel the ruin of their friendship. "Jamie--" she started with a gentle hand on his arm.

He quickly pulled back before she could touch him, making her forget her words. He started walking backwards, still peering into Jude's wet eyes. As soon as he reached the doorframe, he quietly muttered, "Good luck, you two," and turned to leave. 


	21. Chapter 21

"Jamie! Wait!" she screamed after him. Jude followed Jamie down the hall, nearly running to catch up to him. "Let me explain!"

"Explain what?" Jamie yelled back, turning his entire body to face her. She quickly stopped, close to running into him and he continued, "Explain how you're in a secret-- doomed-- relationship with a guy that's both seven years older than you and your producer?"

Jude glanced around to see the stage crew and EJ staring at her. She crossed her arms over her chest nervously. "Jamie, please," she whispered. "You're my best friend…"

Stiffening, Jamie held his head up with a sudden realization. "And that's all I'll ever be."

"Jamie," Jude called after him as he turned away.

Stopping, Jamie said simply, "The Jude Harrison I grew up next to-- The Jude Harrison that would talk to be about anything and everything-- The Jude Harrison that used to be my best friend-- The Jude Harrison that I loved… She's gone." He took a few steps away, but shook his head downwards in disappoint with himself. "I want to be friends with the new Jude… It'll just take some time and some adjustment… I'd rather have slightly-altered-Jude, than no Jude at all."

Jude watched Jamie walk away with his head hung low. She looked around the room again, and all the staring eyes quickly turned away. All she could do at that point was sigh.

"Is it true?" EJ questioned as she approached Jude. "You and Tommy?"

Walking into the conversation, Tommy placed a hand on the small of Jude's back, causing her to turn around and look at him. He smiles at her and answered, "Yeah."

EJ's face lit up. "This is great! You two will be on the front cover of every magazine or my name isn't E--"

"No, EJ," Jude interrupted. She glanced back at a confused Tommy. She had her own reasons. "No big announcement, but no hiding. People will find out… When the find out."

Nodding, EJ added, "Stars need their privacy too." With a little bit of bitterness, she also stated, "No matter what great publicity they'd get."

As EJ left the two alone, Tommy took Jude into his arms and spun her around. "Is Jamie okay?" he asked.

"He's pretty hurt and he needs time," Jude replied simply.

Shyly, Tommy asked, "Are you okay?"

Jude smiled and wrapped her arms around him. "For now." 


	22. Chapter 22

Coming from backstage, Jude and Tommy entered the main room of the club holding hands. They could feel the crowd staring, but failed to let that affect them.

Kat approached Jude with hesitation. She quietly said, "I'm sorry about earlier."

"I'm sorry," Jude insisted. "I shouldn't have lied to you. I was just confused and-and… I'm sorry."

Taking Jude into her arms, Kat hugged her tightly. When Jude squeezed back, Kat commented, "It wasn't your fault. I made you lie when I should've just dropped it."

They pulled back to look at each other and shared a laugh. Kat took an extra step back and gave both Tommy and Jude an approving smile. She turned to leave Jude noticed where she was heading. Sitting at a table across the room, Jamie gave Jude and Tommy a stern head nod, and quickly looked away.

Jude smiled as she realized he really was trying. Just from the subtle head nod, Jude knew things between herself and Jamie would work out in the end.

They made their way over to the bar after giving Kwest a thumbs up at his balcony. Kwest gave them a smile and a smug clap.

Tommy took a seat at the stool left of Sadie as Jude took the right. When she realized who surrounded her, she scoffed. "What now?"

"Are you drunk?" Jude questioned quietly, trying not to attract attention to them.

Sadie looked Jude dead in the eye and downed half a glass of beer. "I'm old enough to… be. So is Tommy. You still got, what? Three years?"

Clearing his throat to changed the subject, Tommy announced, "Maybe we should take her home."

"You wanna take me home?" Sadie questioned wildly. "It's a little too late for that… Dude! You're dating my sister! And by the way, she's sitting right there." Sadie spun around on her stool so her entire body faced Tommy. A little quieter, Sadie suggested, "But when you guys get this whole 'thing' out of your systems, then give me a call."

Sadie leaned in close to Tommy, but Jude pulled her back. "What do you mean, 'thing'?" Jude inquired.

Waving at the bartender to refill her drink, Sadie turned to Jude and patted her on the head. "Naïve little Jude… The 'thing' is the forbidden love you guys have. Once it's not so forbidden and you guys realize people don't really give a damn about you two--" She grabbed her fresh beer and took a dainty sip. "It'll all be over."

"It's not like that, Sadie," Tommy corrected.

"I know," she muttered quietly into her drink. "Can you guys just leave me alone?" she requested a little louder.

Not exactly wanting to, Jude and Tommy backed away from the bar. Tommy stuck with Jude, a hand on the small of her back as she led him over to her mother.

Victoria Harrison watched them approach her and cleared her throat. "Can you tell me something, Tom?" Victoria asked, trying to stand strong.

Taking a step forward, from behind Jude, Tommy nodded his head.

Victoria continued, "Can you promise you'll take care of my daughter and treat her as well as she deserves?"

"Of course," Tommy stated with ease in a soft tone.

Exhaling deeply, Victoria took a look at her young daughter growing into adulthood. She took another look at Tommy and could see how much he felt for Jude in his eyes. She confessed, "I don't approve of the age difference, and it doesn't help that the two of you work together… But I know how much the two of you care for one another…" As tears started to from in her eyes, Victoria stepped closer to Jude and grabbed her by the face. She whispered, "He's a keeper."

Jude had a light chuckle as she wiped a few of her mother's tears away. She knew that her mom was probably thinking about her dad and their love. But she wasn't going to say anything to make it worse." Thanks, Mom." She hugged her mother tightly and breathed out, "I love you."

"I love you, sweetie," Victoria hugged also. She pulled back and gave Tommy a friendly smile. "You two have fun. I'm just gonna head home now. Clubs aren't really my scene."

The three of them had a laugh before they headed in separate directions for the night. There was still one last stop for the new couple. 


	23. Chapter 23

"What? You gonna punch me again?" Darius asked as he saw Tommy and Jude near.

Shay and Georgia turned around to see the couple walking towards them, holding hands.

"I shoved you," Tommy corrected. "And I'm not gonna do it again if you don't about Jude like that ever again." He stood tall next to Darius, staring him in the eye.

Darius stood just a little bit taller. HE looked over Tommy and Jude with critical eyes. He let out a chuckle as he took one last glance over Tommy and replied, "The boy's in love!" Darius started to pat Tommy on the back. "It's about time!"

They couldn't help but smile at Darius' light-hearted response. Especially since it came from a man that stroke terror in people and always had some reason to cause drama.

The only person that didn't seem to be enjoying the occasion was Shay. He stood a few feet away from the group, silent. He clenched his jaw, trying to hold in his frustration, but didn't succeed. "Are you people stupid or crazy? Because I can't figure it out!"

"Shay Shay—" Darius started with a hand signaling him to stop.

Ignoring his uncle, Shay continued, "It's like some bad pedophile joke. It isn't love!"

He started to walk away, but Jude's voice stopped him when she asked, "Then what's your idea of love, Shay?"

He tried to think of something, anything. Yet the more he thought about it, the more he felt like a fool. Shay always felt that Tommy was a threat when he was dating Jude, and now he knew why. "I hope you two are happy together," was all he could mutter.

It should've ended there, but Jude followed him to the back of the club. Jude the two of them, Jude called out, "Well I hope you're happy with Eden."

"I'm not with Eden anymore," Shay stated with an irritated tone.

Hitting him like a ton of bricks, Shay turned to look at Jude. He squinted his eyes with bewilderment and asked, "Is that what this is about? Are you trying to-to get back at me?"

Jude scoffed at his ego and answered, "Tommy and I have nothing to do with you."

Nodding stiffly, Shay questioned, "Then what are you doing here? Why'd you follow me?"

With a chuckle, Jude said, "Apparently for the wrong reason." She turned away, not wanting to be in the same room with the kid anymore.

But Shay grabbed her arm to stop her. "What is it?" he questioned with a little bit of kindness.

"I forgive you," Jude said uneasily. She could see he didn't fully comprehend what she had said. Jude continued, "I've spent so much time hating you, Shay. And I'm not saying what you did was okay, but… I forgive you."

Shay nodded his head and responded with, "Thank you."

Giving him a slight smile, Jude tried leaving again. This time, she stopped herself to say, "It was nice working with you, Shay."

"Same here, Shorty," Shay stated with a grin.

Jude left Shay alone and walked back into the crowded club. She caught up with Tommy and joined him at a table. "Miss me?"

Tommy stood and took her hand. He gave it a soft peck and sweetly replied, "Of course." Tommy pulled out the chair for Jude and walked around the table to his own seat. "So, uh, what went down with Shay?"

"Nothing," Jude replied. She could see that Tommy didn't completely believe her and reassured him, "Really. Nothing 'went down'."

Nodding his head, Tommy said, "Okay."

She could sense the curiosity in his voice. Jude rolled her eyes and elaborated. "I told him that I forgave him for what happened."

"You forgave him?" Tommy asked with a touch of shock. He was still mad at the kid and it wasn't even his heart that got broken.

Jude nodded her head. "You gotta forgive people sooner or later… I'd rather do it before it's too late." Jude smiled, slightly referencing multiple conversations they'd had that day.

Wide eyed, Tommy spoke, "Speaking of forgiveness…" Tommy nodded towards the club door.

At that moment, Jude turned around to see Stuart stiffly walking into the scene. She froze, not wanting him to be there.

Stuart Harrison caught a glance of his daughter and quickly made his way towards her. "Jude!" he called to her.

Sliding off of her seat, Jude stood. She grabbed Tommy's hand after stating, "Let's go." She dragged him through the crowd, heading towards the back exit.

Once they were outside of the club, Tommy slowed down, also slowing Jude. "Whoa," he said as they finally came to a completely stop in the parking lot. "Are you okay?"

Jude spun around in Tommy's arms and sighed. Her face was stained with tears and obvious pain lay in her eyes. She gave Tommy one look and melted in his arms. "I just—I can't do it! I can't look at him the same way anymore!" she squealed.

"Shh…" Tommy tried everything he could think of to comfort her. He whispered optimistic thoughts in her ear and stroked her back gently as she wept openly.

Placing Jude in his car, Tommy knew exactly where to take her to clear their minds. Evan though the drive was silent, both of their minds were on overload.

After a twenty minute drive, Tommy parked his Viper in what seemed to be the pitch black night. He got out and opened the door for Jude. Before closing the door, Tommy leaned in and turned up the radio. They sat on the hood of his car and looked out into a valley of lights. Tommy brought Jude to a secluded park above the entire city. They were on top of the world.

Tommy sighed and commented, "If this doesn't help clear your mind… I don't know what would."

He breathed in his surroundings. The lights were nothing more than lit houses and offices, street lights and signs. Yet, from a distance, it was more magical than a person could imagine.

Jude glanced over at Tommy and could see the tranquility in his eyes. His voice and attitude calmed her, even though she was still thinking about her father. Scooting closer to him, Jude let her body fall into his arms. She quietly said, "I don't want to 'clear my mind'."

With a sweet peck on the top of her head, Tommy inquired, "What do you want?"

"I don't know… To think..?"

Tommy ran his fingers through her red locks, gently playing with her hair. "I'm all ears if you wanna think aloud."

A few of the lights had dimmed since they started gazing. It was hard to make out where the lights had disappeared from in such a mass amount, but Jude noticed the difference. She took a deep breath and stated, "I can forgive a creep like Shay, but I can't even look at my own father. My flesh and blood."

Tommy understood where Jude was coming from. It was just that day that they discussed her issues of forgiveness. "You looked up to your dad, Jude. When he let you down, it meant a lot more than Shay Shay being a stupid kid. It'll take time."

"Do you know how much you mean to me?" Jude pulled back to look into Tommy's eyes. When she saw the shock on his face, she continued, "I love you, Tommy. You mean so much to me, and on occasion, you've hurt me… Now look at us. Why is forgiveness so hard when it comes to my dad?"

Clearing his throat, Tommy tried to think of some brilliant words of wisdom. "I-I don't have an answer for you, Jude. But if you ask anyone else, I'm sure they're just as confused."

Closing her eyes tight, Jude buried her face in Tommy's chest. She knew he was right, but it wasn't the answer she was looking for. "The worst part I that I keep on shutting him out. I miss him so much, Tommy. I just can't let him back in."

As she started to weep, Tommy held her in his arms. "It'll be alright." Trying to calm her, Tommy gave Jude the occasional kiss on her head. "Just give it some time."


	24. Chapter 24

Even more difficult than usual, Jude rolled off of her bed with just enough time to shower before hitting the studio. She let the water wake her up a little more before getting on with the rest of her morning routine. She stepped out of her house with her guitar strapped to her back, and notebook in hand.

"Hey," Stuart Harrison greeted as her eyes met his.

Jude looked down and shuffled her bangs between her fingers. "I-I need to get to the studio." She tried to walk away, but he grabbed her arm to stop her.

He sighed and pleaded, "Please, Jude. I've been waiting here all morning for the chance to talk to you."

Pulling her arm away from his grasp, Jude crossed her arms across her chest. She tried to stay calm with obvious pain and stated, "Then talk."

Stuart cleared his throat. He was planning on easing into the conversation, but he could tell Jude was in no mood for small talk. "Let me give you a rid e to the studio." He turned to his car and opened the door to the passenger's seat. He glanced back at Jude and pleaded, "Please?"

Making her way past him, she got into the car and shoved her guitar in the back. She then put her seatbelt on and crossed her arms across her chest. She looked over at her dad, standing in the open door way, staring at her. "I'm gonna be late," Jude said with a touch of bitterness.

"Oh," he said as he closed the door and ran around the car. He climbed into the driver's seat and started the car.

Stuart pulled out and stopped at the first stop sign. He glanced over at Jude before he proceeded to pass the intersection. "How's school?"

Jude kept her eyes focused on the road. "Fine."

She bit her bottom lip as she felt tears begin to form. It was hard enough dealing with all the changed she was already going through, but it was hardest with her dad. It broke her heat that she couldn't talk to her oldest and once truest friend anymore. It was like she was lost in the world without him, but she still couldn't let him into her heart.

"It's really hard for me to make up for what I've done, Jude," Stuart finally stated, breaking the awkward silence. "But I can't lose you. You're my daughter, and I love you more than you'll ever know. Sadie too."

Blinking away tears, Jude stayed focused out the window. "Maybe you should've thought of that earlier."

Stuart nodded, repeatedly glancing over his shoulder at Jude. "Not that it's an excuse, but sometimes people tend to do things without thinking about the consequences. And people tend to make mistakes." Stuart sighed as he came to a stop behind a red light. "Even parents."

Jude sniffled as the sun created a glare on the window. She caught her own reflection, as well as her father's behind her. Jude exhaled deeply as the car started moving again. "I never said you were perfect, Dad."

They pulled into G Major and Stuart parked his car next to the front steps. "Honey, I'm sorry. I just-- I hope that one day you and your sister can forgive me because I can't live without my girls."

"One day," Jude stated quietly. She opened her door and slid out of the car. She leaned her head in and added, "I could live without you, Dad…" Just closed the door and took a step back. She opened the back door to get her guitar and looked her dad dead in the eye. "I just don't want to."

She got her stuff and stood at the passenger window, looking in at her father. She smiled as kindly as she could before she started up the steps and he took off. 


	25. Chapter 25

Her hand on the door handle, Jude exhaled. Even though there was no final words or decisions, Jude felt like a load was off of her shoulders. She was finally letting herself warm up to her dad, and it was right. She let herself into the studio with a lighter disposition.

"Hey!" Georgia greeted Jude as she walked into the conference room. "You're early."

Jude nodded as she grabbed herself a cup of coffee. "My dad drove me," she stated. She took her usual seat, to Georgia's side.

Georgia looked at Jude with a touch of shock. She didn't expect Jude to be speaking to her father after hearing about Jude's father's affair. Georgia knew everything about Jude these days. "So you're good with your dad now?"

Almost immediately, Jude shook her head. "No… But I'm working on it."

"Just what I like to hear," Tommy stated as he entered the room. He took the seat next to Jude and kissed her hand softly. He brought a hand to the back of her head and stroked her hair. "I'm proud of you."

"Thanks," Jude replied softly.

With a giant grin on his face, Kwest entered the room and sat across from them. "The happy couple, together at last."

"And without public recognition," EJ added as she sat in her spot.

"Alright, alright," Georgia stated, calming the room. "Let's get to work."

With every laid out before her, Jude never felt better. Everything in her life seemed to be so hard and difficult. But in these past few days, Jude realized that was just life. Sometimes, the hand you're dealt seems like a lot to handle, but it what you have to do to live. Each day, you have to wake up and take what they throw at you, and if you're lucky enough, you get to this point. Jude Harrison was at her point. Even though the recent hardships seemed to be over, there are more to come. Now she's just prepared with a better understanding of the world. 

Her fingers interlocked with Tommy's, she was happy.

The End. 


End file.
